Salt Lake City police have arrested a 21-year-old man in the killing of a man outside a Salt Lake City nightclub early Sunday, whom police say died after a single punch to the face.
At 1:51 a.m. Sunday, police received a report of an assault at 149 W. Pierpont Ave. When officers arrived, they found “a large fight” and “a chaotic scene with more than 100 people on the streets, with more exiting the nearby entertainment venues,” police said.
As officers tried to disperse the crowd, along with the assistance of Salt Lake County deputies and a private security company, they heard apparent gunshots being fired in the area around 2 a.m.
Police did not find a shooter, but officers did find Yusuf Mohammed, 37, unconscious on the ground. He had suffered head and facial trauma, and was taken to a hospital, where he later died.
According to Salt Lake City police, witnesses said Mohammed was standing in a parking lot when he was approached by a group of men. According to the witnesses, the 21-year-old suspect punched Mohammed a single time in the face “without warning or provocation,” police said in a news release.
After his arrest, the suspect told police he delivered the deadly punch after being told Mohammed had allegedly assaulted a woman he knew, according to a probable cause statement, which was released hours after the initial police news release Wednesday.
Mohammed fell backward to the ground and was knocked unconscious. The suspect left the area. Officers and paramedics performed first aid on Mohammed before he was hospitalized and later died.
The suspect was later identified through surveillance footage, and Salt Lake City police’s central bike squad along with homicide detectives arrested him Tuesday. The 21-year-old man was booked into the Salt Lake County jail for investigation of homicide. He is being held without bail.
The Salt Lake Tribune generally does not name suspects until they have been charged with a crime.
This marked the seventh homicide in Salt Lake City this year. Anyone with information on the case — and anyone who may have photos or videos of the events leading up to, during or after the deadly assault — may call 801-799-3000 and reference case No. 22-129894.
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