18-year-old arrested in connection to deadly shooting at West Jordan party

WEST JORDAN, Utah (ABC4) — A second suspect was arrested in connection to a deadly shooting at a West Jordan party that left a 19-year-old dead.

Vincent Caleb Vasquez, 18, was arrested Friday on one count of obstruction of justice — capital/first degree felony conduct, which is a second-degree felony.

According to arrest documents, Vasquez is accused of helping another suspect — Tayden Huntsman, 19, who was arrested in March on several charges including aggravated murder — get rid of a weapon and make arrangements to leave town.

Officials with the West Jordan Police Department said the shooting happened at a party on March 9. At the scene, authorities found Hugo Lucero, 19, with a gunshot wound, and Lucero was later pronounced deceased.

After executing search warrants on Huntsman’s cell phone and social media accounts, authorities discovered that Huntsman was communicating with Vasquez after the incident. Vasquez is said to be the “known leader” of a gang, and Hunstman is “documented as a gang member,” according to an affidavit of probable cause.

Documents said that, on the day of the shooting, Vasquez “exchanged messages through text and social media with [Huntsman] instructing him to throw the firearm that was used in the incident in a river.” Vasquez also allegedly offered to get money for Huntsman to “get him out of the state.”

Vasquez was taken into custody on Friday while reportedly attending Huntsman’s detention hearing at a Salt Lake City courthouse.

After he was taken into custody, Vasquez allegedly denied getting money to help Huntsman leave town. Vasquez said he had asked friends for funds “with the intent to give money to [Huntsman] to help him, but was unsuccessful.

Vasquez reportedly admitted to telling Huntsman to get rid of the weapon, but said he didn’t know whether Huntsman had done so. Vasquez was booked into the Salt Lake County Metro Jail on the aforementioned charge.

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