Sheriff continues fight against gang crime in Salt Lake area

SALT LAKE CITY – After years as an investigator with the Metro Gang Unit, it's no secret that Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera has zero tolerance for gang violence.

“We will go after the gangs that prey on our communities, and it will not stop. As long as I am sheriff, it will not stop!” she said.

As an investigator in that department, Rivera was named Officer of the Year for her role in solving the gang murder of a West Valley teenager in the 1990s.

As a young man murdered on the morning of August 3 at the trailhead to Mt. OlympusDetectives from the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office quickly determined that the suspects were suspected members of a local street gang.

Just over a week later, detectives arrested a 19-year-old, a 20-year-old and a 15-year-old in connection with the murder. It was the first major case for the sheriff's office since it split from the Unified Police on July 1.

Sheriff Rivera says the Metro Gang Unit remains housed in the Sheriff's Office and that the experience of those detectives is invaluable in cases like the one at the trailhead.

“We knew that these gang members, who we consider to be very violent, could do it again and may have already done it,” she said. “And I'm very proud of our team for investigating this case and getting it to where it is now.”

“But we still have to go through the legal process and see how we can hold them accountable.”

Despite advances in solving gang crimes, Rivera knows the number of young gang members continues to grow. In some cases, she says, investigators are now dealing with the grandchildren of gang members she dealt with more than 25 years ago.