STURGIS, South Dakota — A year ago, the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally became the scene of a shootout between a Wyoming man and two law enforcement officers.
The events that led to the violent confrontation that included 42 shots fired and the dramatic capture of Wyatt James Fluty of Saratoga, Wyoming, involved an armed robbery, near theft of a police car, assistance from an off-duty officer and, for the officers involved in the arrest, the fortuitous jamming of a gun.
It all took place with the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in the backdrop and bikers potentially in harm’s way, according to South Dakota authorities.
In mid-July, Fluty, 29, was sentenced in Meade County Circuit Court in South Dakota after pleading guilty to attempted first-degree murder of a law enforcement officer and one count of commission of a felony while armed. Fluty will serve 50 years in prison for the crimes, the South Dakota Attorney General’s Office said.
“This case is another example of how law enforcement officers put their lives on their line every day for the rest of us,” South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley said in a statement.
The case involved law enforcement agencies across two states, including South Dakota’s Division of Criminal Investigation, which led the investigation, the Sturgis Police Department, Meade County Sheriff’s Office and the South Dakota Highway Patrol.
Began In Rawlins
The trouble began July 27, 2023, when the Rawlins Police Department in Wyoming identified Fluty as the suspect of a stolen red Chevrolet pickup and four guns, including a black Taurus 9 mm handgun with wooden hand grips, according to the report of an internal investigation into the shooting that Cowboy State Daily obtained.
On Aug. 7, 2023, Fluty was in a red truck when he approached a vehicle stopped on the side of a county road in Pennington County, South Dakota, the report says. He pointed a handgun at the driver and passenger and demanded money and phones, which they turned over.
Fluty then shot up the driver-side mirror, scaring the driver, who sped away with Fluty firing more shots toward them.
The next day, the report says the South Dakota Highway Patrol ran into Fluty in rural Meade County, South Dakota, where he evaded them. Investigators soon pieced together that he was the same suspect connected to both the Rawlins stolen pickup case and the armed robbery the day before.
On Aug. 9, 2023, a highway patrol officer Fluty had fled from saw him walking along a road on Dickson Drive near Junction Avenue in Sturgis. The trooper got out of his car and drew his gun. As he began talking to Fluty, he holstered the gun, pulled out his taser and fired, missing Fluty, the report says.
Fluty ran into a ditch and pulled out a gun from his waistband and fired at the trooper.
The trooper hit the ground as Fluty fired again, the report said.
Into A Patrol Car
The suspect then ran toward the trooper’s parked patrol car as the trooper shot at him, according to the internal investigation. Fluty got into the patrol car while the trooper sought cover behind a utility box.
An off-duty deputy sheriff from Minnesota saw the shooting from a nearby convenience store and ran toward the trooper. He joined the trooper in firing at the patrol car. Eventually, the report said, Fluty tossed his handgun out of the window. He had been shot in the hail of gunfire.
Fluty surrendered and was taken to a hospital, according to the internal investigation. The injuries proved to be minor, according to the attorney general’s office.
35 Witnesses
Internal investigators who reviewed surveillance video from the convenience store and a video from a witness, studied evidence at the scene and interviewed the officers and 35 witnesses. They found the officers had been justified in the shooting.
The trooper and off-duty deputy said they feared Fluty could run down a nearby crowd nearby if he had gotten away.
Investigators found the 9 mm Taurus semiautomatic pistol they believed had been stolen out of Carbon County, Wyoming, at the scene. The gun had 12 of 15 rounds left in the magazine. One cartridge casing was found stuck in the barrel of the gun, causing the weapon to malfunction, the report said.
Detectives found 42 casings at the scene, three of which they believe Fluty fired. They also found a stolen black backpack, several 9 mm cartridges Fluty was carrying, suspected marijuana and suspected methamphetamine.
Fluty declined to speak to detectives without a lawyer. In interviews with his family members, detectives learned that Fluty had limited contact with them. They told investigators that he was a meth user, who became paranoid when he was under the drug’s influence, the investigative report said.
Attempts to reach Fluty’s family were not successful Sunday.
Justin George can be reached at justin@cowboystatedaily.com.
