SALT LAKE COUNTY, Utah, April 3, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — A West Valley City man wanted by police after his wife was reportedly held hostage in their residence and choked has been booked into the Salt Lake County jail.
Charging documents already had been filed naming Feroz Sediqi, 33, as the suspect in the case.
Charges against him are:
- Attempted murder, a first-degree felony
- Aggravated kidnapping, a first-degree felony
- Aggravated assault, a second-degree felony
- Violation of a pretrial order, a third-degree felony
But Sediqi was not in custody until about 6:30 Wednesday evening, when he turned himself in, Lt. Steve Katz, West Valley City Police Department, told Gephardt Daily.
“The individual did report to the jail and was booked on a warrant issued earlier,” Katz said. “I believe it was on the advice of his attorney.”
Katz said when jail officials realized the nature of the charges for which the warrant was filed, they requested backup. The jail, at 3415 S. 900 West, is in the South Salt Lake Police Department’s jurisdiction.
A dispatcher recognized Sediqi’s name and realized the man was wanted in a West Valley City case, so the WVCPD sent a detective to the jail to help book the suspect, Katz said.
A probable cause statement already on file says Sediqi’s wife told officers that on March 8, her husband became angry while at their residence, and that she told him she was leaving him, then began to exit the residence.
“The defendant grabbed her by her arms and pulled her into their bedroom,” the statement says. “The defendant locked the door and she told him that she wanted to leave. The defendant punched the headboard next to her head and began to call her names.”
She tried to leave again and the defendant grabbed her jacket, pulled her back and told her “the only way you can leave is if you leave this earth,” the probable cause statement says.
The defendant reportedly told his wife that he was going to kill her and then himself.
She then told officers that the defendant grabbed her throat with both hands and squeezed until she lost consciousness. She then said she awoke on the floor and observed the defendant pacing back and forth.
“The defendant told her ‘now I really have to kill you,’” the statement says. “The defendant dragged her into the corner, placed one hand over her nose and mouth and placed his other hand around her neck, strangled her to unconsciousness a second time. She stated that when she awoke, her nose was bleeding, she had lost control of her bladder, she couldn’t feel her tongue and felt very nauseous.”
Sediqi’s wife stated she was unable to stand up, had a headache, her face and eyes felt swollen and she could not remember who the defendant was or what happened for a few minutes. The defendant then told his wife that he was going kill himself and she had to watch, the statement said.
“The defendant cut himself with a knife and his parents entered the room, helped him with his cuts and told his wife not to leave,” the statement says.
“The defendant took his wife’s phone and keys to prevent her from leaving. The defendant had his family watch her when he went to work to make sure she didn’t leave.”
The wife stated that the defendant’s family eventually left her alone in the residence on March 14, so she grabbed some belongings and fled the residence. She subsequently received medical treatment. She had severe petechiae, which is caused when tiny blood vessels break open in both eyes from the strangulation, the statement says.
Detectives found that there is an active pretrial protective order issued in the Superior Court of Washington that prohibits the defendant from contacting, threatening or abusing his wife. The defendant was served with the pretrial protective order on Nov. 6. The underlying charge is a felony domestic violence offense.
