Police: Man Fatally Shot Himself After Chase in Salt Lake City
Sep 5, 2018, 11:26 PM | Updated: Sep 6, 2018, 1:23 am
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Police say a man who ran from police appears to have died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after a short chase.
The incident happened around 4:15 Wednesday afternoon in the area of 400 West between 300 South and 400 South. The Salt Lake City Police Department said a business in the area called them to report 35-year-old Michael Zahn was trespassing. When police arrived, they learned that Zahn had a felony warrant for his arrest. As they tried to arrest him, they said he ran from them. At some point, police said, one of the officers fired a shot. They did not say what circumstances led the officer to fire. They also did not say whether that shot hit Zahn. They say Zahn ran into a building at 333 South 400 West, and police began to clear people out of the building.
“Officers went into the building and, some time later, discovered Mr. Zahn inside the building deceased from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound,” said Sergeant Brandon Shearer of the Salt Lake City Police Department.
Because an officer fired a shot, Salt Lake City Police Department initiated their officer-involved critical incident protocol, which means West Valley City Police will investigate the shooting. The officer who fired the shot will be on paid leave during the investigation. Salt Lake City Police Department will also do their own internal investigation into the incident.
A 2017 executive order from Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski requires all body camera video from an officer-involved critical incident to be made available within 10 days of an incident. Shearer said the department would comply with that order.
