Sandy — A man was shot and killed by police Friday at a senior living community in Sandy. He was identified by his family as 45-year-old Ian Unser, and U.S. Marshals said he was a wanted fugitive.
Ian Unser’s family is waiting for answers from law enforcement and has asked to see the officer’s body camera footage. They also question the response time of emergency medical workers after the shooting.
Ian Unser’s criminal history
Ian Unser was staying at his elderly mother’s apartment at Silver Pines Senior Community when officers arrived to search. He was prohibited from entering the premises, his brother Anthony Unser said.
KSL TV revealed that police obtained two warrants for his arrest on November 21st. The first case was in response to an incident in June at the same senior living community.
On June 8, police responded to a report of a “suspicious person” who was described as “walking around the parking lot screaming and brandishing something,” according to court documents. Police found Ian Unser sitting in a red Cadillac that didn’t belong to him and later found a rifle behind his passenger seat, documents said.
The second arrest warrant was related to a separate incident on Aug. 4. According to court documents, Ian Unser is charged with failure to stop when ordered by law enforcement, a Class A misdemeanor.
Ian Unser pleaded guilty on Oct. 2 to a third-degree felony count of possession of a firearm by a restricted person for the first incident in June.
On November 13, Ian Unser pleaded guilty to the August 4 charges and was sentenced to three years’ probation. He was given credit for 86 days served in the Salt Lake County Jail and ordered to complete 50 hours of community service.
shooting
After obtaining a warrant, police searched the Silver Pines property on Friday, where he was shot and killed by the U.S. Marshals Violent Fugitive Apprehension Team (VSAT).
Sergeant Greg Moffitt of the Sandy Police Department told KSL-TV that the events leading up to the shooting remain under investigation.
“A series of events occurred, and we don’t know what they were, but the result was an officer-involved shooting that resulted in the death of an adult male,” he said.
Ian Unser’s brother, Anthony Unser, said his mother was in the apartment with him when police came to the door.
“They started banging on the door and said they couldn’t get in without a warrant. And they said they were going to break down the door because it was a hostage situation, which I don’t understand. I can’t,” Anthony Unser said.
The mother said she didn’t feel threatened until officers arrived.
At some point, the officers were able to break through the door and encountered Ian Unser.
“And they just shot him. Three shots is what I heard,” Anthony Unser said. “They reached the center of gravity and shot him dead. He was allegedly trying to retrieve a knife.”
Anthony Unser said his disabled mother came out of the bedroom after the incident and witnessed her son being shot.
“This is going to be a big problem for our family. She just witnessed something horrible,” he said. “We need to join forces with her and make sure she’s okay.”
Anthony Unser said he wanted to examine the officer’s body camera footage to see if Ian Unser was attempting to pull a knife on him.
“He wasn’t a violent person…he wasn’t. I’ll tell you, he had a big mouth and a strong resistance to authority. But he wasn’t a violent person. It wasn’t a person,” Anthony Unser said. “At the end of the day, he was a really good person. He was always there for people and always wanted to be loved. He just ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time. ”
KSL TV is waiting to hear back from the U.S. Marshals on questions including the moments immediately before the shooting and emergency medical aid response times.