Investigators believe the now-18-year-old accused of fatally shooting two men at an Airbnb party in Draper earlier this month only meant to hit one of the victims.
The second victim apparently was collateral damage — the result, charging documents say, of Daniel Martinez firing approximately 10 rounds into a crowd near 11460 S. Cranberry Hill Ct. as he “skipped and danced down the street.”
Salt Lake County prosecutors on Friday charged Martinez, who was 17 at the time of the shooting, and Ashtyn Ortega, also 18, with multiple felony counts of murder.
The documents filed in 3rd District Court outline for the first time what happened leading up to the April 3 shooting, which left 27-year-old Austin Terry Powell and 21-year-old Jonathan July Fuentes dead. Draper police didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Friday, and it’s unclear how or if the victims knew the alleged shooter.
The shooting
Witnesses told police the shooting happened around 1 a.m., after the Airbnb owner arrived at the party and told guests to leave. Martinez was outside breaking beer bottles in the road when he got into an argument with Powell, according to charging documents.
Ortega told police that Martinez asked him for his gun, and Ortega gave it to him. Another witness told police he saw Martinez receive the gun and shoot at Powell. When police arrived, they found Powell dead near his Tesla car. They noted bullet holes in the windshield.
Charging documents state that there are at least two videos of the shooting: one from the homeowner’s doorbell camera, and another recorded on a cellphone.
The phone footage allegedly shows Martinez firing at Powell with the gun in one hand as he skipped and jumped.
Police arrested Ortega on April 7. He told them, according to court documents, that Martinez fired the gun.
Martinez also is in custody, court records indicate. It’s unclear when he was arrested. He told police Ortega shot the gun.
In addition to the murder charges, Ortega faces additional weapons and marijuana-related charges.
Both teenagers are being held without bail. Court dates haven’t been scheduled in either case.
‘Completely unexpected’ loss
Authorities haven’t said if the two victims knew each other. Regardless, they ended up at the same party that night. It was Fuentes’ birthday — April 2 — when the party began.
“His loss was completely unexpected,” his obituary read, “and the family is shocked and deeply saddened.”
According to their obituaries, both victims were born in Utah.
Fuentes spent much of his adolescence until he was 13 in El Salvador. He came back to Utah and went to Kearns High School, where he learned — and became passionate about — woodworking.
After he graduated, Fuentes became a vehicle emissions inspector. He dreamed of being a lawyer.
“Jonathan went through many struggles in his lifetime, very sad things, a lot of suffering,” according to his obituary, “but he had a family that supported him until the end and showed him how much we loved him.”
He had a child in 2020, his obituary said, and loved his family, friends and dog Gigi dearly.
Powell was born in Murray and graduated from Summit Academy High School in Bluffdale. He liked watching football and basketball, but he played lacrosse. His obituary said it taught him “discipline, leadership, and teamwork.”
His obituary said Powell loved “traveling with his friends, eating a delicious steak, and driving fast cars” and aspired to start a business.
His “greatest accomplishment” was his daughter. He always told people one day she would run the world.
“The passion he felt for his daughter and her future was unparalleled,” according to his obituary. He would talk to Grace about the importance of girl power, and talk politics with her, always asking her opinion. Encouraging her and telling her how smart she is and that she could be and do anything.”
A GoFundMe page collecting funeral expenses for Powell had raised nearly $7,000 by Friday evening. Fuentes’ GoFundMe had raised $4,000.
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