Gunfire Interrupts West Des Moines Party for Soldiers Returning from Afghanistan

A party for servicemen who recently returned from deployment in Afghanistan was interrupted by gunshots early Saturday morning, according to West Des Moines police reports.

Authorities were called to the 1400 block of 18th Street about 2:15 a.m. Saturday morning after about a half-dozen uninvited guests reportedly crashed the party and “started to cause problems,” according to Officer Aaron Swenson’s report.

Swenson said the intruders were asked to leave after one of the returning soldiers spotted a weapon.

Seven witnesses gave the same story about what happened next:

Several of the invited guests followed the intruders outside and a fight ensued. Two of the uninvited guests displayed and fired weapons, with about a half-dozen shots fired into the air, then left in a vehicle that was unknown to the guests.

Swenson wrote in his report that one of the witnesses acknowledged instigating a shoving match after the intruders were asked to leave.

“One of the men got into his face and pushed him,” Swenson wrote. “The witness said he pushed back and the other man pulled a gun and struck him in the right eye with it. He said the male pointed the gun at his face at an angle and pulled the trigger.”

The witness told Swenson that he heard the gun click as if it were empty.

Authorities have one suspect, a 19-year-old Des Moines man, and are continuing their investigation.