KEARNS — A usually quiet neighborhood was rattled Monday evening when a man who is suspected of stabbing three people used his body to bash a car, then dashed naked through the residential community, a neighbor said.
"I just heard the car alarm going off and came out to see what was going on," said a neighbor, who wished to remain anonymous. "I decided I should call the cops when I saw him running naked down the road."
Details are sketchy, and police have not determined the exact chain of events that unfolded at 5551 W. Nautilus Drive (5375 South), where two brothers reside.
Both brothers, along with two women, were hospitalized. The women, ages 27 and 39, and one brother suffered stab wounds. One woman and the brother, who were critically wounded from stabs to the back, were taken by separate medical helicopters to Salt Lake hospitals. The other woman suffered a lesser wound and was taken to a nearby hospital by ambulance. The other brother, who is suspected of stabbing all three, was also injured during the altercation and was taken to Pioneer Valley Hospital.
Police believe the brothers quarreled in the home before 7:15 p.m. and at some point during the argument, one brother, 35, lost emotional control and took his clothes off, Salt Lake County Sheriff's Lt. Mike Wardle said.
Based on witness accounts and what little information they could gain from the victims, police say they hypothesize that the naked brother then took out a knife and stabbed his 30-year-old sibling and the two women.
After the stabbings, one of the wounded trio reportedly attempted to drive the group to a hospital. The naked brother then reportedly stormed from the home, began jumping on the car's hood and eventually put his head through the windshield, leaving a bloody hole in the shattered glass.
"He apparently didn't want them to go to the hospital," Salt Lake Police deputy Peggy Faulkner said.
The stabbed brother then got out of the car and, though severely wounded, was able to beat his naked brother from the car with a baseball bat, Faulkner said.
The bare brother then began running wildly in the street, but police and paramedics arrived and subdued him, the neighbor said.
"This area is usually really quiet. We've never seen anything like this," he said.
Police don't know a motive for the attack but Wardle said the man may have been mentally handicapped or under the influence of drugs. Faulkner said that hours later, shortly after 11 p.m., hospital staff summoned West Valley police officers when the man again became out of control.
When he is released the man will likely be booked into Salt Lake County Jail, Faulkner said.