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Police: 4-year-old fired gun at officers in Utah

4yearoldshooting.jpeg
Posted at 7:59 PM, Feb 21, 2022
and last updated 2022-02-21 19:59:52-05

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (KSTU) — Police said a 4-year-old child fired a gun at officers on the order of their father during an incident Monday at a McDonald's in Midvale, Utah.

According to the Unified Police Department, a man in a Honda allegedly brandished a gun after apparently getting the wrong order at McDonald's.

The workers called the police after reportedly telling the man they would fix his order.

When police arrived, they were able to locate and remove the man from his vehicle. However, once the suspect was outside, an officer noticed "a firearm coming outside the vehicle," according to UPD Sheriff Rosie Rivera. The officer was able to deflect the weapon, which discharged into a restaurant awning.

Police identified the person who discharged the weapon as a 4-year-old child who was allegedly told to fire the gun by their father. The child was in the backseat of the car with their 3-year-old sibling.

Officers did not fire back after the child fired the weapon.

"This campaign against police officers, this needs to stop. We're here to protect and serve, and this is getting out of hand," said Rivera. "This is a child who thought it was OK to pull a firearm and shoot that firearm at police. I've never seen anything like this in my 28 years."

Although the officer was able to deflect the firearm, he did receive a small injury to his arm.

The father was taken into custody.

This story was originally reported by Emily Tencer on fox13news.com.