On a cold February evening in 2016, a tragic event unfolded in a quiet South Salt Lake neighborhood, leaving a young Hispanic/Latino male, 17-year-old Armando Cuenca-Curiel, and two others dead. The incident, which took place on February 18th, occurred inside a Ford Explorer that was found stopped in the middle of Park Creek Lane. When police arrived, they discovered Cuenca-Curiel, who had sustained a fatal gunshot wound to his side.
Two brothers, Angel Lopez-Salinas, 20, and Lauro "Raul" Lopez-Salinas, 19, were also found in the vehicle with critical gunshot wounds to the head. They were transported to a local hospital but later succumbed to their injuries.
The investigation into the triple homicide quickly pointed to a fourth individual who had been in the SUV. This person, identified as 19-year-old Gerald R. Grant of Florida, had also been shot, suffering a wound to his leg. After the shooting, witnesses reported seeing a man limp away from the vehicle and make a phone call before being picked up by a white car. Grant later arrived at the University of Utah Hospital for treatment.
As detectives pieced together the events of that night, a narrative of a drug deal gone wrong began to emerge. It was revealed that Grant had arranged to purchase marijuana from the men in the SUV. However, testimony later suggested that both parties had intended to rob each other during the transaction. Grant claimed that he had fired in self-defense after one of the other men shot him in the leg and they began to beat him.
Following his release from the hospital, Gerald R. Grant was arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated murder and one count of obstructing justice. Another man, Mahad Abdirashid Omar, was also implicated in the crime. Omar allegedly connected Grant with the victims for the drug deal and, based on text messages, was later charged as an accomplice with three counts of murder and one count of aggravated robbery. The investigation indicated that Omar had advised Grant to bring a gun to the meeting.
