Utah man arrested after woman sends 911 text reading ‘kidnapped by ex’ amid 3 active protective orders against him

Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.

ST GEORGE, UTAH: A 50-year-old Utah man was detained for violating a protective order after authorities received a text from a woman claiming that she had been "kidnapped by ex, held captive, was at [address], now in a white van."

The police claim that when they arrived at the man's home at the St George address given in the text, no one was there.

They were able to track her down and eventually found her "in the desert area of Arizona," which is south of St George, by pinging the woman's cell phone.

Suspect faces three counts of violating a protection order

Three counts of violating a protection order are being brought against the suspect, which is a third-degree felony. To preserve the privacy of the purported victim, the suspect's name is being kept a secret.

According to police, on Thursday, March 14 night, they received a text message to 911 alerting them to a possible kidnapping. The affidavit stated that the same number called 911 on the same day but remained silent when dispatch answered.

The suspect and woman, according to the police, were not present when they visited the address listed in the text.

They claimed that the residence had been the source of multiple other 911 calls, but the police who attended to those calls discovered no proof of a crime.

According to the affidavit, the suspect was a resident of the address and had a criminal history that included convictions for kidnapping, human trafficking, and domestic violence.

The woman who texted 911 was then located by authorities, who pinged her cell phone and discovered that she was "in the desert area of Arizona," south of St George, ABC4 reported.

According to the affidavit, deputies located the woman in the white van but "were unable to confirm that there was any issue." The suspect was then located and taken into custody.

Woman was allegedly traumatized by domestic violence

The victim allegedly refused to provide any information about any crime that had occurred when police tried to speak with her.

“I noted based on my training and experience, that [the woman] showed signs of trauma, as she would not make eye contact with me, appearing scared to talk,” the affidavit read.

A female officer was asked by the police to respond and speak with the woman. The claimed victim allegedly admitted to the female officer that she had called 911, but she would "shut down and not provide any information" when pressed for details.

The woman started to cry when they performed a lethality test, which is a domestic violence assessment that establishes the likelihood of an abuser killing a victim, according to records.

As per the police report, they observed “burn marks near her wrists as if bindings were used on her arms.”

Following the affidavit, the suspect was detained for allegedly breaking three active protection orders that the woman had filed for him. At this point, he is not being prosecuted on any more counts in connection with the incident.

On Thursday, March 14, the suspect was taken into custody by the Washington County Sheriff's Office.