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TOOELE - An 18-year-old Tooele man was arrested here early Thursday and charged with murder in the shooting death of Richard Martinez.
Wearing a bulletproof vest, Daniel Herrera appeared a short time later before 3rd District Judge Randall Skanchy.
About 5 feet tall with short hair and a baby face, Herrera looked more like a schoolboy than a killer. The judge appointed a public defender after learning Herrera was unemployed and living with his parents.
Police Chief Ron Kirby credits the public with helping to bring the case to a quick resolution.
"We appreciate the community's help and all the citizens stepping forward with information," he said.
Officers took Herrera into custody about 2:30 a.m. Thursday. Prosecutors charged him with first-degree felony murder, possession of a firearm by a restricted person and obstructing justice, both second-degree felonies.
Police received numerous phone calls indicating that Herrera killed Martinez, and Herrera confessed the crime to his parents, according to a probable cause statement an officer filed with the Tooele County Jail.
A .22-caliber handgun, believed to be the murder weapon, was recovered from Herrera's mother's home in Salt Lake City, police said.
Martinez died about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday after being shot once in the upper chest near Settlement Reservoir dam in southeast Tooele. He had been walking his dog with a friend at the reservoir. The friend told police he saw Herrera argue with at least two people in a red Cadillac, Kirby said. The car left, and about a half an hour later, the friend, who was at the waterline of the reservoir, about 100 feet away from Martinez, heard shouting and a gunshot.
"This was definitely not a chance encounter [between Martinez and the gunman]," Kirby said.
Both men were raised in Tooele and probably were acquainted, said Kirby. "We're still a size of town where people know each other," Kirby said.
Police are looking for at least one more possible suspect in the shooting, Searle said.
Investigators do not believe the friend who was with Martinez at the reservoir was connected with the murder.
Herrera has a criminal history that includes at least one other violent crime, which occurred when he was 16, said Tooele County Deputy District Attorney Gary Searle. He would not elaborate on the nature of Herrera's criminal past but said it earned Herrera the weapons restriction.
Herrera is being held in the Tooele County jail in lieu of $1 million bail. His next court appearance is set for Oct. 5 at 8 a.m.