Utah Police: Suspect in Shooting Near University in Custody

Utah Police: Suspect in Shooting Near University in Custody
Elbert Paule has turned himself in to police for a shooting at an apartment complex near Utah Valley University, south of Salt Lake City. (Orem Police Department via AP)
The Associated Press
3/2/2019
Updated:
3/3/2019

OREM, Utah—Police in Utah say the suspect in a fatal shooting at an apartment complex near Utah Valley University in Orem has turned himself in.

Orem police announced in a brief statement on March 2, that 19-year-old Elbert Paule was in custody without providing details of the circumstances of the surrender.

The complex where 26-year-old Dominique Barnett was fatally wounded Thursday night is off campus but it prompted the university to issue a shelter-in-place alert for about two hours.

Paule had been charged three times in the last year with drug-related offenses, online Utah court records show. Paule had pleaded guilty in one case and served jail time, pleaded not guilty in another and had not issued a plea in the third case.

Colledge said Paule knew Barnett but didn’t elaborate. It’s possible the shooting was drug-related, but investigators are still gathering information, he said.

University spokesman Scott Trotter said Paule was admitted to the college for spring 2019 semester but didn’t register for any classes.

Barnett was never a student and has no affiliation with the university, Trotter said.

Paule’s criminal history shows he had been charged with possession of drug or drug paraphernalia in three separate incidents dating back to March 2018. His adult criminal record does not show any violent offenses.

He pleaded guilty in May 2018 to possessing marijuana and spice and was sentenced to 180 days and one year of probation. In August 2018, he pleaded not guilty to possession of marijuana and spice and drug paraphernalia. A trial was scheduled for April.

His most recent charge came in January, when he was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia in Orem. He has not yet issued a plea to that charge.

Online court records don’t indicate whether Paule has an attorney who could comment on his behalf.

University spokesman Scott Trotter said Friday that Paule was admitted for the spring 2019 semester but didn’t register for any classes and that Barnett was never a student.

Man Indicted for Snapchat Threat that Panicked Ohio School

CLEVELAND—Federal authorities say a man has been indicted for threatening to shoot Ohio school students on Snapchat.

Authorities say the April 2018 threat targeted Parma High School in suburban Cleveland and led to hundreds of students missing classes over several days.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Cleveland says Russell Miley-Cruz was indicted on one count of transmission of an interstate threat and one count of obstruction of justice.

The 21-year-old man from Scranton, Pennsylvania, was arrested Friday. Online federal court records don’t list an attorney for him.

Parma Police Chief Joseph Bobak said the threat panicked the community and affected students and staff for several days as parents pulled hundreds of children out of school.