This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A "whacked out," knife-wielding home invader was in custody early Tuesday afternoon, but not before sending a grandmother and five children fleeing into a bedroom as he rampaged through their west Salt Lake City residence.
Salt Lake City police Detective Cody Lougy said the elderly woman and her grandchildren, ranging in age from 3 to 7, barricaded themselves inside the room after the suspect broke in about 11:20 a.m. Tuesday.
Police were told the family was watching television when the suspect — described as a raging, 30-year-old Latino male covered in tattoos — broke through the front door screaming.
As the woman and children fled, the suspect grabbed a 14-inch kitchen knife. He beat on the bedroom door as the grandmother used her body to hold it shut while the crying children called 911.
Officers arrived to find the man still on the property, near 450 South and 1000 West, and took him into custody after wrestling him to the ground. The mother and father of the children arrived shortly thereafter.
No one was injured except the suspect, who was taken to the hospital for mental and physical evaluation.
Lougy said paramedics told officers that it appeared the suspect was "whacked out" on drugs, possibly spice.
"There's no apparent motive for the break-in we can figure out at this time," Lougy said, noting the suspect was being uncooperative.
Complicating the initial investigation, Lougy added, was a "language barrier" between officers and the Spanish-speaking victims.
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