2 killed in shooting outside Mormon church in Salt Lake City
[January 08, 2026]
By HANNAH SCHOENBAUM
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Two people were killed and six others injured in a
shooting outside a Salt Lake City church Wednesday night while mourners
were attending a memorial service inside, police said.
The shooting took place in the back parking lot of a house of worship
for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Utah-based
faith known widely as the Mormon church.
Authorities said no suspect was in custody Wednesday.
All the victims were adults. At least three of the injured were in
critical condition, police said.
Police said they do not believe the shooter had any animus toward a
particular faith. They also don't think the shooting was random.
“We don’t believe this was a targeted attack against a religion or
anything like that,” Salt Lake City Police Chief Brian Redd said.
The red brick church in the northwest Salt Lake City neighborhood mostly
serves Tongan congregants and holds regular worship services in their
native tongue, according to its website.
Upon hearing gunshots, residents from a low-income housing complex next
to the church flooded outside to help victims and console dozens of
people who had been attending a funeral for a person who was not
identified.
Brennan McIntire said he and his wife, Kenna, heard several loud
gunshots from their apartment next to the church parking lot while
watching TV. He jumped off the couch and ran outside in flip-flop
sandals to see what happened.
“As soon as I came over, I see someone on the ground,” he said. “People
are attending to him and crying and arguing.”
Kenna McIntire came outside soon after and was rattled at the sight of
first responders lifting an unconscious woman into an ambulance while
people huddled around and sobbed.
The couple said they hear gunshots in their neighborhood almost daily,
but never right outside their door.
“It was really heartbreaking to hear and see," she said.
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Police respond to a fatal shooting in a parking lot of The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City on Wednesday,
Jan. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Hannah Schoenbaum)
About 100 law enforcement vehicles were at the scene in the
aftermath, and helicopters flew overhead. Neighbors huddled in
blankets next to a taco truck, watching the officers work and
waiting for updates.
Police said they were reviewing license plate readers and
surveillance videos from nearby businesses in their search for a
suspect.
“This should never have happened outside a place of worship. This
should never have happened outside a celebration of life,” Mayor
Erin Mendenhall said.
The church, headquartered in Salt Lake City, was cooperating with
law enforcement and said it was grateful for first responders' quick
efforts.
“We extend prayers for all who have been impacted by this tragedy
and express deep concern that any sacred space intended for worship
should be subjected to violence of any kind,” church spokesperson
Sam Penrod said.
About half of Utah’s 3.5 million residents are members of the faith.
Houses of worship like the one where the shooting occurred can be
found tucked into neighborhoods around the city and state.
The faith has been on heightened alert since four people were killed
when a former Marine opened fire in a Michigan church last month and
set it ablaze. The FBI found that he was motivated by
“anti-religious beliefs” against Latter-day Saints.
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Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed.
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