Sheriff continues battle against gang crime in Salt Lake area

After spending 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 are going to come after the gangs that prey on our communities, and that’s not going to stop. As long as I’m sheriff, it’s not gonna stop!,” she said.

As a detective with the department, Rivera was named "Officer of the Year" for her part in helping solve the gang-related murder of a West Valley teen in the 1990s.

When a young man was murdered at the Mt. Olympus trailhead on the morning of Aug. 3 , Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office detectives quickly learned the suspects were allegedly part of a local street gang.

A little more than a week later, detectives arrested a 19-year-old, 20-year-old and 15-year-old in connection to the murder. It wound up being the first big case for the sheriffs office since they split with Unified Police back on July 1.

Sheriff Rivera says the Metro Gang Unit remains housed within the sheriffs 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 believe are very violent, could do it again and may have already,” she said. “And I am very proud of our team that went and investigated this case and brought it to where it is now.

"But we still have to go through the court system and see how we hold them accountable.”

Despite the progress made investigating gang crime, Rivera knows the proliferation of young gang members continues. She said in some cases, detectives are now dealing with the grandchildren of gang members she dealt with more than 25 years ago.

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