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MOAB — A 68-year-old Moab woman was seriously injured Saturday after police say she was shocked with a Taser while walking her dog and then stabbed multiple times Sunday in an "unprovoked assault."
The incident happened when a man and a woman were walking their dogs in the area of 100 South and 200 West about 7 a.m. Saturday. Police say they noticed a man who appeared to be camping who had started a fire in a dry leaf bed and near other dry brush on the edge of a trail next to Millcreek
The man and woman told the camper, who was later identified as Alexander Michael Kensell, that the fire was not safe and he responded by yelling at them as they continued walking, then followed them.
"The male camper retrieved a backpack from his camp and engaged in an unprovoked assault on both parties," Moab police said in a statement.
Kensell, 38, deployed a Taser on the 53-year-old man, shocking him "repeatedly all over his body and on his neck," a police booking affidavit states. The man then fell down and Kensell allegedly began to deploy the Taser on the woman.
The woman used a stick to try and fight back against Kensell, but she also fell. Kensell then stood over the woman and "used a knife to stab her repeatedly in the chest as she lay on the ground," the affidavit states.
The man used a stick and "was able to force the suspect away from the female victim and create a distraction, causing the suspect to chase him. His action effectively kept the assailant away from his friend," Moab police said.
The woman was taken to Moab Regional Hospital in serious condition and was then flown by helicopter to Utah Valley Regional Hospital in Provo for advanced care, according to police. She was reported as being stable.
Moab police lauded the man's actions, saying the woman "would not have survived the attack if her friend hadn't reacted so quickly and heroically."
Kensell was located a short distance away and officers recovered a fixed blade knife and a Taser, according to the affidavit. It also notes that Kensell fled Oklahoma, where he was convicted of a violent felony and is restricted from having weapons. Officers reported finding 24 grams of marijuana in his backpack.
Kensell was booked into the Grand County Jail for investigation of attempted murder, aggravated assault resulting in serious bodily injury, aggravated assault, reckless burning, possession of a controlled substance and two counts of being a restricted person in possession of a dangerous weapon. Police have asked a judge to hold him without bail, saying he is homeless, dangerous and would likely flee if released.
