Police: Provo Man Stabbed Child, Thinking Someone Else Was In Bed With His Wife

PROVO, Utah – Police arrested a man Wednesday after they said he asked his wife who was in bed with her, stabbed into the bed and injured his 23-month-old daughter.

Sgt. Nisha King with the Provo Police Department said dispatchers received a call around 3:30 a.m. Wednesday from the mother, who said she was taking her child to the hospital with a stab wound to the foot.

Officers found 34-year-old Miguel Rodriguez-Vega at the house and detained him, King said.

Jail documents stated that the mother told investigators that she and her children had gone to sleep.

“Her husband Miguel was still awake and had been drinking,” police wrote in the probable cause statement. “Around (3 a.m.) Miguel had begun to yell and scream. The yelling had (awakened) a 23-month-old daughter that was sleeping with the (woman). Miguel entered the bedroom and then began screaming at (his wife) that she did not know how to care for the daughter.”

After the woman told Rodriguez-Vega to leave the room, the documents stated that he turned back toward the bed and asked, “Who’s that in the bed?”

The probable cause statement said the bed had a pillow and pile of blankets heaped on it.

“Miguel then came back into the room, pulled a pocketknife from his pocket, opened it and stabbed it down into the bed,” officers wrote. “When Miguel stabbed into the bed her daughter cried out and began to cry more. (The woman) pulled her daughter closer and saw her foot bleeding.”

King said the injury to the child’s foot required several stitches, but the situation easily could have ended far worse.

“Could it have been somewhere critical?” King said. “Absolutely.”

Jail documents stated that Rodriguez-Vega never admitted to having a knife or to stabbing the bed, though he did tell detectives he started drinking alcohol at around 8 p.m. the night before.

“He did, however, begin crying when told he was being charged by his recklessness,” police wrote. “He began to sob.”

Rodriguez-Vega was arrested and booked into the Utah County Jail on suspicion of felony child abuse, misdemeanor commission of domestic violence in the presence of a child, domestic violence criminal mischief and intoxication.

He was being held without bail Wednesday at the jail.

King urged any families needing help in situations of domestic violence to seek out resources, including from the Utah Domestic Violence LINKLine at 1-800-897-LINK (5465) or National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233).

“If you feel like there’s something that could escalate even, leave the situation,” King said. “Definitely if there’s domestic violence in the home, please, please reach out to the police.”