In a tragic turn of events on December 27, 2016, a young Hispanic man's life was cut short in Salt Lake City, Utah. Sebastian Salgado, a 19-year-old male, was fatally shot in what began as a transaction for an item he was selling online. The incident unfolded in his own car, with his girlfriend present, near 300 E. Browning Avenue around 11:20 a.m.
Salgado and his girlfriend had arranged to meet two individuals, later identified as 18-year-olds Romeo Alyss Alvarez and Anthony Glen
Taylor, to complete the sale. The two men claimed they needed to get money from a location in the city and Salgado agreed to give them a ride. During the drive, the pretense of a purchase dissolved into a violent robbery attempt. A struggle ensued over a handgun that one of the suspects produced, and in the chaos, Salgado was shot in the head. He died at the scene, still inside his parked car.
Following the shooting, Alvarez and Taylor fled the area on foot. Investigators were able to quickly identify one of the suspects, as Alvarez had inadvertently left his wallet behind in Salgado's vehicle. He was apprehended by police later that same night. The second suspect, Anthony Glen Taylor, turned himself in to authorities without incident the following day.
The aftermath of the shooting also revealed a further act of violence against Salgado's girlfriend. After her boyfriend was shot, she was pulled from the vehicle. Surveillance footage from the area reportedly captured Taylor hitting and kicking her as she lay on the ground before he and Alvarez fled. Both suspects, who had only recently turned 18, were found to have histories of violent crime within the juvenile justice system. Taylor, for instance, had faced a first-degree felony charge for aggravated robbery in a carjacking just months prior to the fatal encounter with Salgado. Both he and Alvarez were taken into custody in connection with the homicide.
