Wyoming man accused of firing shot in road rage confrontation in Utah

PARK CITY — A Wyoming man accused of firing a shot during a road rage confrontation with another vehicle on I-80 was arrested Thursday.

Tyler Asay, 30, was booked into the Summit County Jail for investigation of two counts of aggravated assault — both with suggested road rage penalty enhancements — being a prohibited person in possession of a gun, having an open container of alcohol in the vehicle, and altering an identification mark on a gun.

On Thursday, a motorist traveling on I-80 near Park City reported to police that "a black Mazda was tailgating them, drove up next to them and pointed a handgun directly at them. The citizen advised he and his (passenger) ducked and they heard a shot go off," according to a police booking affidavit.

A nearby Utah Highway Patrol trooper also heard the shot and initially thought it was a vehicle backfiring, the affidavit states. But once he received information from emergency dispatchers about a possible shot fired, the trooper caught up with the Mazda and he and several backup units pulled it over.

"We contacted the three individuals in the vehicle. I identified the driver with a Wyoming driver's license as Tyler Asay," according to the affidavit.

Asay admitted to "brandishing his weapon" and claimed he fired a round into the air "in a show of force to the other driver" because he was upset over being cut off, the affidavit states.

A records check showed that Asay was restricted from having firearms and he was taken into custody. During a search of his vehicle, "three more firearms were located in the front passenger floorboard, one in the center console, and two in the back seat. We also located in the center console an open container of an alcoholic beverage," according to the affidavit.

One of the guns found on the floor had the serial number filed off, the affidavit states. Asay admitted the alcoholic beverage was hit and that he owned the gun with the filed-off serial number, police stated in their affidavit.