A male resident of a Valley Mental Health facility remained in the Salt Lake County Jail early Friday after he allegedly beat and stabbed his roommate.
The man, 38, allegedly stabbed his roommate in the back with a kitchen knife after he reached to embrace him, saying, "I'll give you a friendship hug," a Salt Lake police report states. The victim told police the initial stabbing occurred shortly after midnight and that over the next four hours, he was stabbed repeatedly and not allowed to leave his bedroom in the apartment, 280 E. 600 South.At one point, the victim attempted to free himself by kicking the other man, but the man then used a baseball bat to hit the victim in the legs, the report states.
The two men live in an apartment-type setting and have been roommates for about three years, Valley Mental Health spokeswoman Connie Hines said. Nothing noted in reports from counselors or staff indicates there were problems between the two men, nor do case files note any violent acts or tendencies in the man alleged to have committed the assault, Hines said.
Staff and other witnesses said the man came to the front desk and said his roommate had just been stabbed and that the injured man was accusing him of the act. Staff found the man locked inside his room, screaming that he was hurt and could not get up to open the door.
The man told police he had been in bed, but then got up and found his roommate injured and the front door of the apartment open. He was arrested and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail Thursday.
The victim, 39, was taken to LDS Hospital by ambulance for treatment. He was listed in serious condition Friday morning, hospital officials said. He suffered multiple stab wounds to his torso, one to his left arm and injuries to his legs, the report states.