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SALT LAKE CITY — Two years after police say Ansumana Jadama stabbed his neighbor to death in an unprovoked attack, the South Salt Lake man has been found competent to stand trial.
Jadama, 23, was found fit to stand trial at a competency hearing Thursday in the death of his neighbor, 48-year-old Rickey Magnuson. Jadama is charged in 3rd District Court with murder and aggravated burglary, both first-degree felonies.
Police say on Sept. 25, 2013, Jadama knocked on Magnuson's door in the four-plex where they both lived, then without saying a word, he stabbed his neighbor when he answered.
The knife blade was still embedded in the victim's stomach when emergency crews arrived. Magnuson was taken to a local hospital where he later died.
Magnuson's roommate recognized Jadama and identified him to police, who later arrested him without incident. A knife handle was recovered in his apartment, according to investigators.
Jadama was transferred from the Utah State Hospital and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail on Thursday. A preliminary hearing has been scheduled for Nov. 18.
According to Utah state court records, Jadama pleaded guilty to criminal trespassing and criminal mischief, both misdemeanors, in 2012. Although his initial sentence did not include much jail time, he later spent more than 200 days in jail, going between incarceration, mental health court and mental health treatment, court records indicate.
