A suspect arrested in connection with the stabbing of a Muslim worker at a mall near Salt Lake City on Monday told the police that he was trying to kill the man because of the victim’s religion, according to a court filing.
The suspect, Peter Michael Larsen, 48, stabbed the worker repeatedly until bystanders at Valley Fair Mall in West Valley City, Utah, pinned Mr. Larsen to the ground and seized his knife, said Officer Derek Fuhr, who filed the affidavit.
The victim, identified by witnesses as Syed Sohail Uddin, was taken to a hospital. Adnan Mohammed, his boss and a family friend, said Mr. Uddin had wounds all over his body and that a trauma team was closely monitoring his heart.
Mr. Larsen was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and booked into Salt Lake County Metro Jail on Monday evening. As of Wednesday afternoon, charges had not been filed, and a lawyer for Mr. Larsen could not immediately be identified. Attempts to reach Mr. Larsen’s family were not successful.
During a law enforcement interview, Mr. Larsen said “he believes he is a catalyst and he intends to kill Muslims,” the affidavit said. Releasing him from jail would be dangerous “based on his violent actions today” and his ideologies, the affidavit said.
Before attacking, the suspect asked Mr. Uddin, who was working at a mall kiosk, where he was from, his name and if he was Muslim, said Luna Nunez, who works with Mr. Uddin, recalling what he told her when she visited him in the hospital.
Mr. Mohammed said it was a “miracle” that Mr. Uddin was still alive.
Since the stabbing, Mr. Mohammed said he has been unable to sleep, adding that he had read hateful comments about the attack online.
“I’m a father, and I feel unsafe for my kids to be here,” he said, adding, “It’s terrifying for me, my family. It’s traumatizing. I saw a lot of blood.”
Islamophobia is rising in the United States, with anti-Muslim statements from politicians on the right becoming more prominent. In May, two gunmen killed three people at the largest mosque in San Diego County in an attack that is being investigated as a hate crime.
Imam Shuaib Din, who leads the Utah Islamic Center, a mosque Mr. Uddin has attended, said he has seen a spike in harassment, threats and violence against Muslims in Utah since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas against Israel. But Monday’s attack, he added, “has been the worst attack on a member of our community” in the state.
Mr. Uddin is a “super happy man” and “a protector,” Ms. Nunez said. She also said he is the first person she and other employees of the jewelry business would call if a customer made them feel nervous. At work, he would often talk about his wife and two young children, Ms. Nunez said.
Salvador Mendez, who works at Lids, a hat store, at Valley Fair Mall, said he saw the police taking the assailant out of the mall on Monday. He also said the assailant was covered in blood and looked at him in a way that scared him.
“I’ve just never seen anyone look at me that way,” Mr. Mendez said, adding that “he looked at us with hatred.”
Sheelagh McNeill contributed research.