Police: Woman, Child Held Hostage In Magna For Nearly A Week
Nov 26, 2018, 7:17 PM | Updated: 8:27 pm
MAGNA, Utah – A Salt Lake County woman showed up at the hospital early Monday morning to report that she and her son had been held captive inside their own home for nearly a week, according to police.
The woman told detectives that her estranged husband, 29-year-old Elias Christopher Lorenzo Garcia, had threatened to kill her if she tried to escape. A SWAT team swarmed the house, located at 3731 South and 8000 West in Magna, but didn’t find Garcia inside.
“He wanted the children for the Thanksgiving weekend and things went sideways from there,” said Sgt. Melody Gray with Unified Police Department of Greater Salt Lake.
“As a father it breaks your heart,” says dad of woman who police say was held hostage inside her own home for nearly a week. Young child also held captive, police say. I’ll have the full story NEXT on @KSL5TV at 6pm from Magna. @kslcom @kslnewsradio pic.twitter.com/ljjCoMaxKI
— Ladd Egan (@laddegan) November 27, 2018
Officials said the hostage situation started on Tuesday, November 20, when Garcia showed up at the home, even though the woman has an active protective order against Garcia, Gray said.
“He has not allowed her or their 3-year-old child to leave the home since then,” Gray said. “He was threatening her with her life if she tried to leave.”
Gray said the woman’s older son from a separate marriage was staying with relatives for the holiday and was not home during the ordeal.
It was not clear exactly when Garcia left the house.
The woman’s father, Richard Carmichael, said he sensed something was wrong when he stopped by the house over the weekend and wasn’t allowed past the entryway.
Elias Christopher Lorenzo Garcia, age 29
“She has been held here virtually against her will for the last four days or so,” said Carmichael.
At the hospital, Carmichael said he learned his daughter was physically assaulted during the time she was held captive.
“I was looking at the medical report in the hospital along with her bruises and contusions. It was bad. It was bad,” he said. “As a father, it breaks your heart.”
Police said the woman suffered minor injuries. The child was not harmed.
Carmichael worried his daughter won’t be safe until Garcia is arrested.
“He needs to be put away before he hurts someone else,” Carmichael said.
As of Monday evening, police were still actively searching for Garcia. Sgt. Gray asked residents not to approach him and to call police if he’s spotted.
