Man Who Held Woman Hostage for Weeks Attacks Police With Sword Before Arrest
A Utah man has been arrested after a SWAT standoff with K-9s uncovered a suspected hostage situation on Friday. West Valley police have confirmed the suspect as 50-year-old Garman Shaun Cunningham.
Police say Cunningham has been holding a woman hostage since November 1. The woman tells police he forced her to drink WD-40, has cut her with a knife, and has allegedly murdered another female.
The victim also says she was deprived of food and water, was not allowed to sleep and was raped by the suspect throughout her kidnapping.
When authorities arrived on the scene, Cunningham was observed throwing objects out of his window towards police officers. After warning officers he was armed, Cunningham fired a round at officers. He then exited the home wielding a sword. After refusing to cooperate, Cunningham dropped the sword and began to flee away from authorities. A police K-9 was released at that moment and successfully took down the suspect.
Cunningham has been arrested on 11 charges including aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault, felony discharge of a firearm, assaulting a peace officer and more.
He is currently booked in the Salt Lake County Jail. The female victim’s identity and condition are not known at this time.
