This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Salt Lake City police say a panhandler, enraged when restaurant drive-through customers rejected his demands for cash, turned his guitar into a weapon — and a ticket to jail.
Officers were called to the McDonald's at 210 W. 500 South just before 7 p.m. Tuesday. They were told that the suspect had snapped, striking a car with his guitar when the occupants refused to give him money.
He then allegedly opened the passenger's side door of the car, pulled a woman out and struck her in the chest before a witnesses came to the woman's aid and the suspect ran from the scene.
Police soon spotted him nearby. After a brief struggle, he was subdued and booked into the Salt Lake County jail.
The 44-year-old was being held in lieu of $2,680 bail Wednesday on suspicion of second-degree felony kidnapping, third-degree felony aggravated assault and misdemeanor resisting arrest and criminal mischief.
The woman was treated for minor injuries and released.
Her car sustained an estimated $1,000 in damage from the guitar assault.
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