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RIVERTON — One person was killed in a police shooting in Riverton Friday.
Joshua Mel-Scott Watson, 40, of Riverton, was shot near his home after being pursued from Sandy by police.
The incident started as a stolen car investigation in Sandy. Officers started following the stolen vehicle about 5:40 a.m., Riverton spokesman Josh Lee said. Officers engaged in what Lee described as a "low-speed pursuit," with speeds averaging about 50 mph.
Watson used the Bangerter Highway and Mountain View Corridor to go through Sandy, Herriman and Riverton. Lee said officers used tire spikes on multiple occasions in an attempt to stop the car.
About 6:30 a.m., in a residential area near 13800 South and 2105 West, after tire spikes had been used again, the fleeing vehicle was boxed in by officers from all three departments, Lee said. After being surrounded, Watson stopped the car and got out.
"The suspect presented a weapon and a threat and there were shots fired," Lee said.
Watson was pronounced dead at the scene. Court records list Watson's home as being at location where the pursuit ended.
Lee says Watson was well known to Riverton police due to his criminal history. Court records show Watson had been charged numerous times in burglary, theft and assault cases. His most recent felony convictions were in 2017 when he was convicted of attempted theft twice, and fleeing from police in three separate cases and was sentenced to a term of up to five years in the Utah State Prison, according to court records.
