Police identify man killed in Salt Lake City shooting, arrest a woman they said made ‘false statements’

Police are investigating a deadly shooting that happened in downtown Salt Lake City, and have released the name of the man who was killed.

The investigation started at 2:37 a.m. on Sunday, when 911 dispatchers received reports of a shooting near 350 East and 800 South, according to a news release.

When officers from the Salt Lake City Police Department arrived, they found a man dead on the sidewalk, the release stated. Police identified him as 18-year-old Gabriel Vigil.

Based on what officers have so far, they know that just before the shooting, there was an argument, which escalated into a fight, another news release stated. Witnesses told police a car left the scene in an unknown direction. Police and crime lab technicians found gunfire damage to a house, fence and several parked cars, the release stated.

Police said that several people who are connected to the shooting had been attending a birthday party at a nearby house, the release stated. After the shooting, people at the party and witnesses to the shooting left before police arrived, according to the release.

On Sunday, officers arrested a 23-year-old woman on suspicion of obstruction of justice, the release stated. She is being held in the Salt Lake County Metro Jail after police said she “made false statements to hinder, delay, or prevent prosecution in this investigation.”

Anyone with information about the shooting should call 801-799-3000 and reference case 24-9955.

Police had previously identified this shooting as the first homicide in Salt Lake City in 2024. But subsequently, the Salt Lake City Police Department identified the case of a dead person being found at a storage unit at 502 W. 300 South as the city’s first homicide for the year.

Correction • Jan. 16, 12 p.m.: This story has been updated to reflect that the shooting it described was not the first homicide in Salt Lake City in 2024.