Man charged with shooting 2 at Utah park said he killed his Texas neighbor, police say

Salt Lake Police investigate a scene in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. Salt Lake police officers investigate a shooting that occurred at 17th South River Park on May 1. A man who was arrested in the case was charged with 25 felonies on Thursday.
Salt Lake Police investigate a scene in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. Salt Lake police officers investigate a shooting that occurred at 17th South River Park on May 1. A man who was arrested in the case was charged with 25 felonies on Thursday. | Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News

A man police say fired into a crowd of people participating in a soccer game at a Salt Lake City public park last week, injuring two people, told officers he had fled to Utah after he "shot and killed his neighbor in Texas" earlier this year, according to charging documents.

Steven Matthew Macias, 33, is now facing more than two dozen felony charges in relation to the Utah case, and could face additional charges in Texas. He was charged in 3rd District Court Thursday with two counts of discharge of a firearm, each first-degree felonies; two counts of obstructing justice, each second-degree felonies; as well as aggravated assault and 20 additional counts of discharge of a firearm, all third-degree felonies.

The Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office is seeking for Macias to be held without bail, noting that he "has no ties to Utah and has no reason to remain here" and that he is also a person of interest in a homicide case in Texas.

The litany of charges stem from a shooting on May 1. About 7:30 p.m., Salt Lake City police responded to multiple reports of a shooting at the 17th South River Park, 1150 W. 1700 South. A 65-year-old man who was sitting in his truck and a 21-year-old man who was playing soccer at the park were both wounded, according to police.

The 65-year-old man told police that he was sitting in his truck drinking beers and watching soccer games when Macias arrived at the park and started drinking with him. The two and a third person continued drinking together even after the third person left, according to the charging documents.

He added that they went to a store and got more beer before returning to the park. The man said he fell asleep because he was "super drunk" but awoke to find Macias confronting him "about some money that was missing," the document states. It states that Macias then began going through the man's truck but couldn't find the money he was looking for.

"(The man) stated that he was sitting in his truck watching the kids play soccer when he suddenly heard gunshots and realized that Macias was shooting at him and also toward the soccer field," the charging document states. "(The man) stated that Macias stood in front of him and shot into his truck, striking him in the chest. (He) got out of the truck and started running across the street."

Another witness told police that they saw a man near the soccer field "asking a kid who was sitting on the benches if he had seen his money" just before the shooting began, as well, according to the charges. The 21-year-old man was critically injured after he was also shot in the chest. No update was provided on his condition Thursday.

Salt Lake City police dispatch received a call the following morning from someone who claimed that he was at the park and "thinks he may have done something, and he needed law enforcement to know where he was," police said. The charges note that police used cellphone data to determine that the number of the caller was in the area of the park at the time of the shooting.

Utah Highway Patrol troopers eventually caught up with Macias and arrested him in Eureka, in Juab County, later in the day.

Macias told police that he was visiting Utah and started drinking with two other people, becoming "intoxicated" at some point, according to the charges. He lost "some money" and began confronting the 65-year-old man he was drinking with during the evening.

"Macias stated that he was upset with the older Hispanic male, so he took out his AR-15 from his vehicle and started shooting at the older Hispanic male while he was sitting in his truck," the charges state. "Macias admitted that he then turned and started shooting into the crowd behind him. Macias admitted that he was aware of the people around him and he had no regard for anything."

He said he dumped the gun near a lake after the shooting, according to court documents. He also told police that he had only been in Utah "for a couple of months" after he killed his neighbor in Texas at the start of the year, the charges state.

The documents did not state where in Texas the potential shooting took place. Macias is scheduled to make an initial appearance in 3rd District Court on Monday, according to state court records.