FOR IMMEDIATE  RELEASE

FEBRUARY 13, 2024

SLCPD Arrest Man Accused of Fleeing from Officers, Trooper Recovering from Fall 

SALT LAKE CITY — A trooper with the Utah Highway Patrol (UHP) is recovering from serious injuries after falling from an overpass while assisting the Salt Lake City Police Department and other law enforcement agencies search for a suspect connected to a drug investigation.

The trooper’s condition is listed as serious but stable.

At this point, no additional information about the trooper is available for release.

This investigation started at 10:08 a.m., on Tuesday, February 13, 2024, when Salt Lake City police officers tried to stop an SUV near 900 West North Temple Street.

The driver, later identified as 34-year-old Sammy Michael Swickey, immediately sped off.

Salt Lake City Police officers did not pursue the SUV.

At 10:10 a.m., dispatchers broadcasted a description of the SUV to surrounding law enforcement agencies.

At 10:23 a.m., another Salt Lake City Police officer spotted what he believed to be an SUV matching the description of the suspect’s SUV near 1300 South 7200 West.

The officer attempted to stop the SUV, but Swickey drove off again. In the process, Swickey hit the officer’s patrol SUV, causing damage.

The crash did not injure either the officer or the officer’s K-9 partner.

As Swickey drove northbound on 7200 West, troopers with the Utah Highway Patrol set up a tire deflation device on 7200 West near I-80.

A trooper fell off the bridge while pulling the deflation device back.

Officers on scene immediately started providing medical aid.

With the help of a Utah Department of Public Safety helicopter, law enforcement found and safely arrested Swickey near 300 North Admiral Byrd Road.

The DPS helicopter pilot then flew back and took the trooper to the hospital in serious condition.

Officers booked Swickey into the Salt Lake County Metro Jail on charges of aggravated assault against a public safety officer, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, failing to stop at the command of a police officer, driving on a denied or revoked license, and failing to obey a traffic control signal.

Charges are only allegations, and every arrested person is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Salt Lake City Police Department is not the custodian of record for jail booking photos. Utah Code 17-22-30 mostly prohibits the release of jail booking photos. Generally, a jail booking photo can only be released by the custodian of record after a conviction or when law enforcement determines the person is a fugitive or an imminent threat to a person or public safety. In Salt Lake City, the Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office is the custodian of record for jail booking photos.

PIOs from SLCPD and the Utah Highway Patrol responded to the scene and provided community updates.

Photos taken from the scenes are being released. Media may use these photos with credit to the Salt Lake City Police Department and the Utah Highway Patrol.

Photo: A Salt Lake City Police SUV received damage to the front-driver’s side wheel after being hit by a fleeing SUV (SLCPD photo, February 13, 2024).

Photo: Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Cameron Roden provides an update to media on 7200 West near I-80 (Utah Highway Patrol photo, February 13, 2024).

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