Man detained for TRAX stabbing not arrested

SALT LAKE CITY — A man who was detained and questioned for allegedly stabbing another man on a TRAX train Wednesday was not booked into the Salt Lake County Jail.

Utah Transit Authority spokesman Gavin Gustafson said Thursday that it is still an "ongoing investigation" and that police still have more people to interview and evidence to process. He noted that officers have all the contact information for the man originally detained.

Wednesday about 8:30 a.m., a man was described by other passengers as being agitated when he got on a northbound Blue Line train about 8:30 a.m.

"He was having some sort of mental break," Gustafson said Wednesday.

When another passenger confronted him, Gustafson said that passenger was stabbed twice.

The victim was taken to a hospital with serious injuries that did not appear life-threatening.

"Some of the other passengers basically subdued the suspect, and then the train pulled into the 600 South station, where UTA (police) took the suspect into custody," Gustafson said.

He explained that it was fairly busy at the time of the stabbing, and about a dozen people likely witnessed what happened. It was resolved in about 10 to 15 minutes because of the quick work of everyone involved.

"We had ordinary citizens getting involved in the situation so there's a lot of people who are due some gratitude," Gustafson said. "And certainly our police responding quickly right at the next stop for the train and taking him into custody quickly."

Despite being taken into custody, the man was released after being questioned.

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