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SALT LAKE CITY — A man accused of slitting a woman's throat after she invited him into her house was charged Thursday with attempted murder.
In addition to attempted murder, a first-degree felony, Eric Ison Jones, 30, who is homeless, was also charged in 3rd District Court with aggravated burglary and aggravated robbery, first-degree felonies; possession of a weapon by a restricted person, a third-degree felony; and unlawful use of a financial card, a class B misdemeanor.
On Feb. 6, Salt Lake police responded to a report of a stabbing in the area of 850 S. West Temple. Officers found a woman whose throat was cut and rushed her to a local hospital where she had emergency surgery. Doctors determined the woman had suffered "an 8-inch laceration from the top of her neck across the entire length of her throat. Her outer jugular vein was severed and had to be clamped to stop the bleeding," according to charging documents. The woman also suffered a broken nose.
When the woman was able to communicate with detectives, she told them that she had met Jones, whom she did not previously know, outside her apartment complex.
"She stated he seemed nice and invited him in for a beer," the charges state.
The woman noted that Jones smelled bad so she allowed him to take a shower. "After he was out of the shower (she) stated that she said something that made the male angry." The woman then asked Jones to leave her apartment, which caused him to become "enraged," according to the charges.
"Jones started hitting (the woman) on her head, face and neck. (She) fell to the ground where Jones continued to stomp on her face and neck. Jones then cut (the woman's) throat from the base of her right ear past the midline of her neck on the left side," the charges state.
Jones is accused of taking the woman's wallet as he left the apartment. The woman later contacted police to notify them that "her credit cards were being used throughout the Salt Lake Valley."
Investigators obtained surveillance video from the businesses where the credit cards were being used and identified Jones, the charges state, adding that fingerprints collected at the crime scene also matched Jones'.
Jones was convicted of aggravated assault in 2019 for threatening a man with an ax, court records indicate. He was sentenced to three years of probation for the crime.
In 2020 he was charged with aggravated assault in another case for allegedly stabbing another man in the arm. That charge was later dropped after prosecutors were unable to proceed with the case because an "essential witness" couldn't be found, according to court records.
In April, Jones was charged with aggravated assault in yet another similar case in which he was accused of hitting a man in the head, neck and hands with a machete, charging documents state. That case was also later dismissed.
"The repeated nature of aggravated assaults with dangerous weapons against victims over the last four years and the recent escalation to an attempted murder demonstrate by clear and convincing (evidence) that (Jones) is a danger to the community and the victim, and should not be released pending trial," prosecutors stated in charging documents.
