Man arrested in I-15 rock throwing

One man has been arrested and police are looking for another after separate incidents in which rocks were thrown at moving cars on the freeway.

Utah Highway Patrol troopers arrested a 22-year-old transient Friday after rocks struck vehicles, injuring one person and damaging several cars.

Department of Public Safety officials had expressed concerns of a possible "copycat" after extensive media coverage of the first incident. And it seems that fear was confirmed Friday night.

"We were certainly concerned that this would happen," Department of Public Safety spokesman Derek Jensen said. "Until we find the guy, it is hard to know what his motivation was."

Rocks were first thrown last week on the I-15 corridor downtown on two occasions. This week, there were six more incidents — one on Tuesday, four on Wednesday and one Friday morning.

By Friday afternoon, the 22-year-old man had been booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of one count of aggravated assault and five counts of criminal mischief, Jensen said. He is suspected in all eight of those incidents, Jensen said.

Then about 7:30 p.m. Friday, rocks were thrown at cars from the side of I-15. No one was injured, although one woman complained of glass in one of her eyes.

The man who was arrested in the earlier incidents allegedly had been tossing fist-size rocks up into the air and onto freeway overpasses on the I-15 corridor near downtown Salt Lake City and on I-80 near Redwood Road, Jensen said.

One rock broke a windshield and hit the driver's collarbone, Jensen said. A UHP trooper's truck was one of the damaged vehicles.

Investigators said the man accused of throwing the rocks told them he was acting out "David and Goliath," although it remains unclear exactly what he meant by that, Jensen said. Investigators believe the man may be suffering some mental health deficiencies, Jensen added.

"We were lucky we only had one injury, and that driver was fortunate because an inch or two farther and it could have hit his face," Jensen said. "We're fortunate because a rock hitting a windshield at freeway speeds could potentially be fatal."

Troopers located the man in a transient camp near I-80 and Redwood Road Friday midmorning after the eighth such incident occurred at 7:30 a.m., Jensen said. Another transient male who was talking to police led officers to him.

On Friday night, three cars were hit with rocks the size of softballs. A man was seen throwing rocks at cars from the side of I-15 at approximately 7:38 p.m. Jensen said it appeared the man was running alongside cars and aiming at the drivers.

The man was described as an African-American, 5 foot 5, thin build, wearing a dark-colored hooded sweatshirt and dark pants.

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com; jdobner@desnews.com