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FARMINGTON — A Utah man who met an 18-year-old woman on Tinder and lured her to a Bountiful park with plans to murder her has pleaded guilty to stabbing her and subsequently stabbing another woman he attacked after his date escaped.
Kane Thomas Fairbank, 20, pleaded guilty but mentally ill last week to attempted aggravated murder and a reduced count of attempted murder, first-degree felonies, as part of a plea deal. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop charges of aggravated kidnapping, a first-degree felony, and obstructing justice, a second-degree felony.
Fairbank admitted to arranging a date with the woman on the Tinder dating app. Fairbanks said he then lured her to a secluded location in Mueller Park on May 12, 2022, and stabbed her multiple times "while under the effects of an episode caused by schizoaffective disorder," according to his plea statement.
The woman suffered wounds to her hands, neck and face during the attack, police said. The woman was able to get out of the car and run away, but Fairbank chased after her and stabbed her in the back "in a final attempt to kill her."
Police say Fairbank then went to the area near 550 North and 500 West and stabbed a 64-year-old woman multiple times, causing life-threatening injuries. The woman fell to the ground and fought back before Fairbank ran away. He told police the second woman was a stranger and he decided to attack her because "she was elderly, alone and vulnerable," according to police.
When police interviewed Fairbank, they say he told them that he was planning the first victim's murder since he started talking with her on Tinder.
Fairbank also "admitted to planning to continue to kill other people" after stabbing the first woman, according to a police affidavit. He allegedly told police about his plans to "live out of his car and even took steps to pack what he said was food to sustain him through this endeavor."
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 27.
