WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah (ABC4) — A man has been arrested after a SWAT standoff with K-9s uncovered a suspected hostage situation on Friday.
West Valley Police have identified the suspect as 50-year-old Garman Shaun Cunningham. Police say the suspect has been holding a woman hostage since November 1. The woman tells police Cunningham 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 officers arrived at the suspect’s home, Cunningham was seen throwing objects out of a window towards officers while saying he was armed. The suspect shot a round at officers and eventually exited the home while wielding a sword.
After police commands to cooperate were ignored, police say the suspect dropped the sword and started fleeing on foot. 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.
ABC4 will update this story if more information becomes available.
