Mesquite local Aaron Lowe, a football player at the University of Utah, was killed in a shooting at a house party in Salt Lake City on Sunday, Sept. 26, police confirmed.
The Salt Lake City Police Department said Lowe was killed following a shooting incident that happened just after midnight on Sunday in the city’s neighborhood of Sugar House. Police said the incident, which occurred just hours after the Utes beat Washington State 24-13, left another victim, an adult woman, in critical condition.
According to Salt Lake City Police Chief Mike Brown, Lowe, from Mesquite, died at the scene after being shot by an unknown person. No arrest has been made in connection with this incident.
“I am deeply saddened by the shooting death of Aaron Lowe,” Brown said in a statement. “This talented young man touched the lives of so many here in Salt Lake City and in Texas. The Salt Lake City Police Department grieves with and offers our condolences to the Lowe family and the University of Utah community. Our condolences also extend to the other person injured in this shooting. I hope for their quick recovery. These investigations are complex. Our detectives have been hard at work trying to identify the suspect or suspects in this case.”
A memorial scholarship was created to honor former Utah player Ty Jordan after he died of an accidental shooting in Denton last year. Lowe, who was a high school teammate of Jordan at West Mesquite High School, became the first recipient of the scholarship.
Lowe switched his jersey number to twenty-two to honor Jordan, who was his friend. Lowe’s previous jersey number was the number two, while Jordan wore the number twenty-two jersey before his death.
Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham said in a statement that the entire team was “devastated to hear about the passing of Aaron Lowe.”
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Aaron’s family and friends, along with the other individual who was harmed in this tragic incident,” Whittingham said. “Aaron was a great teammate, friend, brother, and son and was loved by anyone who crossed paths with him. He will be deeply missed.”
University of Utah President Taylor Randall released a statement in which he described Lowe as “a talented athlete, fierce competitor, respected teammate, friend, and a loving son and brother.” Randall added that Lowe’s death is made more difficult because he was the first recipient of the Ty Jordan Memorial Scholarship.
“We mourn this senseless loss and will do all we can to comfort Aaron’s family,” Randall said in the statement.
