CRIME
Police search for person responsible for shooting road signs
TOOELE COUNTY, Utah — Police say someone is using road and cattle signs in Tooele County as target practice causing hundreds of dollars in damage.
“The initial deputies arrived on scene found the first shot up sign and then continued down the roadway found 17 additional signs,” said Sgt. Nicholas Yale, Tooele County Sheriff’s office.
The damaged signs were discovered on Feb. 16th along Mormon Trail Road between Rush Valley and Grantsville. According to the incident report, the damage appeared to have been caused by a shotgun blast.
“Not sure if shots were coming from vehicles or if they stopped and shot them,” Yale said.
According to the report, damage occurred to cross street signs, cattle crossing, cattle guard, curve in the road, truck ton limit, truck entering and exit, and stop signs. The County Roads Department estimated the damage to be around $1,300.
“It’s criminal mischief for the damage of the sign, and possibly crimes depending on what’s discovered during the investigation process,” Yale explained.
He hopes residents in the area will report any suspicious activity along the road they may have seen on or just before the day the damage was noticed. Yale said if the person responsible is caught, they’ll likely face criminal charges.
“If you’re shooting from a vehicle that in itself is a crime,” he said.