Latest news with #Millcreek
CBS News
20-05-2025
- CBS News
Utah man kidnaps girlfriend's family for 6 months, claiming cartel wanted to kill them, police say
A Utah man accused of holding his girlfriend and her family in their home for six months on a lie that "cartel" members were after them has been arrested, authorities said. Dominic Christopher Garcia, 23, faces 28 counts, including seven each of kidnapping and assault, after his arrest Saturday. He remained held Monday without bail in the Salt Lake County jail, CBS affiliate KUTV reported. He allegedly told police he lied to the family about needing to protect them from a nonexistent "cartel," according to the police affidavit. "Dominic said that he continued this lie for several months because he did not know how to stop it in fear that they would not like him," the affidavit reads. He had no attorney listed to speak on his behalf. Garcia moved in with the family of seven in the Salt Lake City suburb of Millcreek in December. Soon after, he allegedly told them his own family had business ties to a cartel and the family needed to protect themselves. Garcia allegedly began carrying a handgun and repeatedly told family members the cartel would kill them if they did not do as he told. Garcia would allegedly rack the 10mm handgun, remove the magazine and point it at family members "as a game," KUTV reported. A man was arrested after convincing his girlfriend and her family that he was involved with a cartel and that its members were out to kill them, ultimately holding them hostage for six months. He later told police he had made the entire story up. — KUTV2news (@KUTV2News) May 18, 2025 Other family members allegedly told police Garcia, at times, kept them from leaving the house for more than short periods. Police went to the house after getting a call from someone inside, according to the affidavit. "The complainant reported they weren't able to take it any longer, and they were holding Dominic at gunpoint until police arrived," the affidavit states. "Officers arrived and took Dominic into custody without incident." According to arrest documents, family members said that Garcia had returned home several times covered in blood, claiming he had been out doing business, KUTV reported. At one point, Garcia allegedly forced his pregnant girlfriend's sister into a four-week "boot camp," where she was forced to work out five times a day, take ice baths and submerge her face in ice water so she wouldn't "feel the pain" when cartel members beat her, KUTV reported, citing arrest documents. Garcia also allegedly threatened the girl's father, saying he would have to kill him if he "stepped out of line," the station reported, citing the police affidavit.
Associated Press
19-05-2025
- Associated Press
Utah man kidnaps family for 6 months, lying they needed protection from 'cartel,' police say
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — A Utah man accused of holding his girlfriend and her family in their home for six months on a lie that 'cartel' members were after them has been arrested. Dominic Garcia, 23, faces 28 counts, including seven each of kidnapping and assault, after his arrest Saturday. He remained held Monday in the Salt Lake County jail, NBC News reported. He allegedly told police he lied to the family about needing to protect them from a nonexistent 'cartel,' according to the police affidavit. 'Dominic said that he continued this lie for several months because he did not know how to stop it in fear that they would not like him,' the affidavit reads. He had no attorney listed to speak on his behalf. Garcia moved in with the family of seven in the Salt Lake City suburb of Millcreek in December. Soon after, he allegedly told them his own family had business ties to a cartel and the family needed to protect themselves. Garcia allegedly began carrying a handgun and repeatedly told family members the cartel would kill them if they did not do as he told. Other family members allegedly told police Garcia, at times, kept them from leaving the house for more than short periods. Police went to the house after getting a call from someone inside, according to the affidavit. 'The complainant reported they weren't able to take it any longer, and they were holding Dominic at gunpoint until police arrived,' the affidavit states. 'Officers arrived and took Dominic into custody without incident.'
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Yahoo
Man holds Millcreek family hostage for months, claiming ‘cartel' wanted to kill them, police say
MILLCREEK, Utah (ABC4) — A 23-year-old man is facing numerous charges of assault and kidnapping after holding his girlfriend's family hostage for six months, telling them that he had family in the cartel and their lives were in danger, according to Unified Police. Dominic Christopher Garcia, 23 faces a slew of charges in Salt Lake County, including seven counts of aggravated assault (third-degree felony), seven counts of threat of violence (class B misdemeanor), seven counts of aggravated kidnapping (first-degree felony), and seven counts of hazing involving use of a dangerous weapon (second-degree felony). On Saturday, May 17, police responded to a home in Millcreek after an individual called 911, stating that he and his family had been held against their will by their daughter's boyfriend — later identified as Dominic Garcia. The caller told police that 'they weren't able to take it any longer' and were holding Garcia at gunpoint until police could arrive. Officers arrived at the scene shortly after and took Garcia into custody without incident. 17-year-old killed in shooting at Kearns High School According to the caller, he and his wife allowed Garcia to move into their home in Dec. 2024 to live with their daughter. The man said that Garcia 'almost immediately' began telling the family that his family was a part of a business that had ties to the cartel, according to court documents. He told them that in order to stay on the cartel's good side, they all had to do certain things and be diligent about their safety. The man told police that Garcia repeatedly told the family that the cartel would kill them if they did not do what they were told. In an effort to protect himself, the father bought a 10mm handgun, which Garcia then began carrying around to 'protect' the family. '[The father] said Dominic would continue to tell them that the cartel was going to kill them and would rack the gun and take the magazine out in the living room, which made him and his family feel threatened,' court documents state. Garcia allegedly told the family that his grandfather's business had been a part of a bad deal, and that they need to leave for a while. The family then left their home for about a month, according to court documents, before returning home. Once they returned home, a family member texted a friend explaining where they had gone, and Garcia saw the text and became angry. Garcia allegedly started issuing threats to family members and become increasingly threatening with the handgun. Garcia 'would carry it around all the time and would make sure he and the rest of the family knew he was carrying the handgun,' court documents state. The father told police that, on certain occasions, Garcia would come home covered in blood and tell them that it was 'due to the business.' According to interviews with multiple family members, Garcia claimed on numerous occasions that there were people outside of their home that were going to kill all of them. Garcia would allegedly also routinely go through their phones and check to see who they were communicating with, and confront them about anything that he disagreed with. The family told police Garcia 'always carried the 10mm handgun around the house and would drop the magazine and replace the magazine and rack the slide again, to ensure it was loaded,' court documents state. He would allegedly also point the gun around the house, including emptying the gun and pointing it at family members 'as a game.' Additionally, after the family had returned home from their month away, Garcia would allow certain family members to only leave the home for two hours at a time, and that only two family members were allowed to leave at all during one week. According to police, the family believed they were trying to keep Garcia in line with the cartel, and that they had to abide by these rules as a condition of his continued membership with the organization. At one point, Garcia had one family member endure a bootcamp for around four weeks, consisting of five workouts a day and ice baths. He allegedly even told the individual that she needed to ice her face because men were going to beat her, and needed to not feel the pain. Garcia allegedly also made family members sleep in the living room and stand guard until 5:30 a.m. every night, to 'watch for people trying to kill them,' court documents state. He allegedly also choked out their pet dogs on occasions when he became upset and violent towards family members. In an interview with police, Garcia admitted that he made everything up and that it was 'all a lie,' court documents state. He first told the family that his grandfather did business with an organization known as 'unknown society,' and that he had made a bad business deal that caused the cartel to come after their family. He told police that he continued this lie for several months, leading the family to believe they were in danger because he 'did not know how to stop it' and was afraid 'they would not like him.' Garcia admitted to police to keeping the gun as well as enforcing the bootcamp on a family member. He reportedly did not admit to anything else. Garcia has been booked into Salt Lake County Jail on the aforementioned charges. He is deemed a flight risk with a positive lethality assessment. Additional charges are to be expected, according to Unified Police. No further information is available at this time. Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Former President Biden diagnosed with aggressive form of prostate cancer Man holds Millcreek family hostage for months, claiming 'cartel' wanted to kill them, police say Some states issue bounty on handsome yet smelly tree Person of interest in Palm Springs IVF clinic explosion confirmed dead: FBI The best SUVs with 3 rows for 2025 Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Yahoo
Man held Millcreek family hostage for months, claiming ‘cartel' wanted to kill them, police say
A man has been arrested after police say he held his girlfriend's family hostage in their Millcreek home for about six months after convincing them he had ties with the cartel and that it wanted to kill them. The man later admitted it was a lie, police said. Dominic Christopher Garcia, 23, was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail Saturday for investigation of seven counts each of aggravated assault, aggravated kidnapping, threats of violence and hazing involving use of a dangerous weapon. A Millcreek man reported Saturday that 'he and his family had been being held against their will by their daughter's boyfriend, Dominic Garcia. The complainant reported they weren't able to take it any longer, and they were holding (Garcia) at gunpoint until police arrived,' according to a police booking affidavit. Officers arrived and took Garcia into custody 'without incident.' The father reported that he and his wife allowed Garcia to move into their home in December of last year to live with their daughter, who was dating Garcia. The father said 'almost immediately, (Garcia) started telling the family that his family was part of a business that had ties to the cartel and that in order to stay on the cartel's good side, they needed to do certain things, and they needed to be diligent in their safety,' according to the affidavit. The household included seven family members in addition to Garcia. The father said Garcia 'repeatedly told them the cartel would kill them if they did not do what they were told.' Garcia began carrying a 10mm handgun 'to protect himself and the family,' the affidavit states. The man 'would rack the gun and take the magazine out in the living room, which made (the family) feel threatened.' At one point, Garcia told the family 'his grandfather's business did a bad deal and that they needed to leave for a while,' causing the family to leave for about a month. One of the household members afterward sent a text message explaining to a friend where they had been, 'and Dominic had seen the text and things became very bad,' the affidavit says. The father reported Garcia 'started telling him that because (Garcia) had brought (the father) into the company, (Garcia) would have to kill (the father) if he stepped out of line,' and that Garcia 'became increasingly more threatening with the handgun and would carry it around all the time and would make sure he and the rest of the family knew he was carrying the handgun,' police reported. The father said Garcia would sometimes come home covered in blood and would tell the family it was 'due to the business.' The other family members also told police Garcia told them 'numerous times' that people outside their home were going to kill them all, the affidavit alleges. Garcia 'would routinely go through their phones and check to see who they were communicating with and would confront them about anything he did not agree with,' police said. The family reported Garcia would routinely make sure his gun was loaded and 'would point the gun around the house,' empty it and 'then point the gun at random members of the family as a game.' Garcia would allegedly limit or restrict the family from leaving the home and would yell at them if they left for longer than he allowed. After the family returned home after leaving for a month, one of the family members said Garcia 'told her that the men wanted her punished and held accountable,' and pointed the gun at her and threatened to kill her. Garcia allegedly made the family member do 'boot camp' for about four months that consisted of 'five workouts a day,' 'ice baths,' and holding her face under water, according to the affidavit. The same family member reported she had to sleep in the living room, standing guard until 5:30 a.m. every night 'to watch for those people trying to kill them,' police said. A 17-year-old family member said she missed a month of her senior year of high school due to the situation. Garcia did not allow her to attend her senior dinner 'because he could not see her location,' according to the arrest report. Garcia's girlfriend, who was pregnant, 'felt he was threatening her family and was concerned for her family but she never felt he would hurt her,' police said, adding that the woman said Garcia 'had choked out their pet dogs on occasions when he became upset and had been violent toward her sister.' When interviewed by police, Garcia told them he 'made everything up' and 'it was all a lie,' the affidavit says. '(Garcia) said that he continued this lie for several months because he did not know how to stop it in fear that they would not like him. (Garcia) admitted to having a gun with him and to sleeping with a gun to protect himself from the people that were coming to kill him and that family,' the affidavit states. '(Garcia) knew he was inflicting mental trauma on this family and causing them to live in fear.' Unified police have asked that he be held without bail due to the family's fear that he will come after them if released. 'Releasing (Garcia) would not only be a danger to the family but would also be a substantial danger to the community if his claims of being involved in the cartel were valid. (Garcia) is a flight risk because he has close family down in Mexico,' police wrote.
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Yahoo
Police identify man killed in Millcreek officer-involved shooting
Millcreek Twp., Pa (WJET/WFXP) — Police have identified the man killed in an officer-involved shooting Sunday night in Millcreek Township. The incident occurred at The Reserves at Millcreek, in the 1600 block of Treetop Drive, just after 7:15 p.m. Sunday. According to Pennsylvania State Police, Erie County 911 received several calls about a man smashing out a car window with a hammer, along with an additional call stating that someone was trying to attack their girlfriend with a hammer. Millcreek police responded to the incident, where they found a man matching the description from the callers. Police identified the man as 36-year-old Patrick Kanonczyk. A brief exchange occurred after which point shots were fired by Millcreek police officers at Kanonczyk, striking him. Immediate aid was rendered, but Kanonczyk was later pronounced dead at the scene. The incident is currently under investigation by Pennsylvania State Police, in conjunction with the Erie County Detective's Office, following standard procedures. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
