West Valley City • Police released the names Monday of the two adults killed in a shooting the night before at West Valley City’s WestFest carnival.
Police spokesperson Roxeanne Vainuku said 18-year-old Hassan Lugundi of West Valley City and 41-year-old Fnu Reena of West Jordan died as a result of gunshot wounds.
She did not identify the 16-year-old male suspect now in custody, an 8-month-old baby boy, who also was killed, nor a pair of teenagers injured by gunfire.
Those two have been released from a hospital. A pregnant woman also was hurt while trying to jump a fence leaving the scene.
West Valley City Mayor Karen Lang and the rest of the City Council shared their grief Monday with residents about the shooting.
“What should have been a joyful night of community celebration ended in unimaginable tragedy,” the elected officials wrote in a joint statement. “We mourn the lives lost and stand in deep sorrow with the families whose worlds have been forever changed.”
Lang and the council also thanked emergency crews who responded when gunfire broke out at WestFest in the city’s Centennial Park.
“West Valley City is a community rooted in resilience, compassion and unity,” they said. “In the face of heartbreak, we must lean on one another, care for one another and recommit ourselves to building a safer, stronger community.”
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) Onlookers watch as law enforcement investigate after a shooting at WestFest in West Valley City, Sunday, June 15, 2025.
Questions remain about how it started
Vainuku told reporters Sunday night that two police officers spotted two groups of people engaged in a verbal clash. On Monday afternoon, she walked back the assertion that there were two groups involved in an altercation, saying instead that detectives were still determining what led up to the suspect allegedly targeting Lugundi.
After the teenage suspect pulled out a handgun and fired several shots, an officer fired a single round toward the suspect. The bullet did not hit the suspect, police say, nor any other bystanders.
Seconds later, Vainuku said, that officer and a second one wrestled the suspect to the ground and took him into custody.
The suspect, who was living in West Valley City, has been booked into a juvenile detention facility, police say, on three counts of suspected homicide.
“We have not yet screened the case,” Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill said Monday in a statement. “Whether a case is filed in a juvenile or district court is a decision that is made at time of filing. It would be premature for us to talk about these matters at this time.”
As part of the investigation, the Salt Lake City Police Department has been questioning the two West Valley City officers. West Valley City detectives have not been able to talk to them yet.
(Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) West Valley City spokesperson Roxeanne Vainuku holds a media briefing after the WestFest shooting.
The shooting took place directly in front of several rides. Brown’s Amusements, the company running the carnival, estimated 1,000 to 2,000 people were on-site when the shooting occurred.
What was security like?
Attendees did not have to pass through metal detectors to attend the celebration, Vainuku said. She added that the city had an extensive police presence there and that the shooting took place within sight of the mobile command post officers had set up for the event.
Vainuku did not know how many officers were working the festival when the shooting happened.
The city will evaluate safety protocols for the festival, Vainuku said. She did not elaborate on what changes could come.
The Utah Arts Festival is due to run Thursday through Sunday at Library Square in downtown Salt Lake City. Executive Director Aimee Dunsmore said security planning for that event is ongoing and includes communication with city police.
“The Utah Arts Festival takes safety and security very seriously,” she said in a statement. “Our security planning process begins months before the event takes place and is ongoing. In collaboration with our security firm, we work to stay current with and put into place the security industry’s best practices.”
She added the festival’s process includes monitoring current events and continued evaluation of necessary changes to safety plans.
The West Valley City violence happened a day after a 39-year-old marcher was shot and killed during a “No Kings” protest in downtown Salt Lake City on Saturday evening.
“Sadly, this is the third statement I have released related to gun violence fatalities that occurred this past weekend,” Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson said in a news release Monday. “... I am so deeply saddened by the loss of life, especially that of an innocent bystander and an infant. My thoughts are with all who were on-site and impacted by this tragedy and the families of those who lost their lives.”