Police searching for man who held his wife and child hostage in Magna for almost a week

Police are searching for a man who allegedly took his estranged wife and child hostage and held them in their Magna home for six days.

SWAT surrounded the home on Monday after the woman escaped, but the suspect — Elias Christopher Lorenzo Garcia — was not inside when they arrived, said Sgt. Melody Gray of the Unified Police Department.

“Sometime last Tuesday, the suspect showed up at the house” at 3731 S. 8000 West, Gray said. “He wanted the children for Thanksgiving. She said no, and it went badly from there.”

Garcia allegedly barricaded himself, his wife and his 3-year-old child in the house; other children were not at home. “He threatened to kill her. He threatened to kill himself,” said Gray, adding that Garcia has a history of gang activity and violence.

The woman was able to escape with the 3-year-old on Monday morning; she went to a hospital for treatment for minor injuries and alerted police. SWAT was dispatched, but the house was empty when officers arrived.

The women was treated and released from the hospital.

Anyone who has information about Garcia’s whereabouts is asked to contact Unified Police at 801-743-7000.