Inset: Aaron Thomas (Facebook). Background: The Tooele County Detention Center in Utah where Aaron Thomas is being held for allegedly attempting to murder his wife (Google Maps).
In Utah, a man faces serious charges after allegedly attempting to break his wife’s neck, reportedly exclaiming, “Why won’t you die?” as he held her throat and head with force. This incident follows a previous assault where he is accused of stabbing her with scissors, according to police reports.
Aaron Ray Thomas, 27, is now confronting charges of attempted murder, aggravated kidnapping, and reckless endangerment. These charges stem from a reported domestic violence attack that occurred on May 7 at the couple’s residence in Tooele County.
As stated in an arrest affidavit obtained by local ABC affiliate KTVX, Thomas allegedly told his wife, “I hope you die,” while choking her, followed by his chilling question, “Why won’t you die?”
Upon responding to the emergency call, police spoke with Thomas’ wife, who recounted the terrifying ordeal. She claimed Thomas attempted to kill her by forcefully twisting her neck with one hand under her chin and the other on the back of her head, as described in the affidavit.
The 911 call recorded the victim’s screams and cries for help as she reported the assault. According to the police affidavit, she managed to escape the home and tried to drive away, but Thomas allegedly blocked her escape by jumping behind her vehicle.
When authorities arrived, they noted visible red marks on her neck, corroborating her account of fearing for her life. A review of court documents by Law&Crime reveals that Thomas has a troubling criminal history, including a previous incident in March where he allegedly attacked his wife with scissors.
During that incident, police say Thomas got into an argument with his wife and stabbed her in the middle of her hand with the scissors after she called him a derogatory term, according to KTVX. He also allegedly stabbed himself twice in the arm before fleeing and later claiming his wife did it.
Local CBS affiliate KUTV reports that Thomas has gotten into at least 10 prior domestic violence incidents that were reported to police. He “just got out of jail” when the strangulation and choking attack happened, cops say.
“Aaron has called in 11 different times for a welfare check to be conducted on the victim,” officers state in the strangulation affidavit. “With these welfare checks, Aaron is always seeking to locate the victim after some sort of unreported domestic incident. Several times the victim has been contacted by officers and she tells them that she does not want him to know where she is due to his violent tendencies.”
Thomas was booked into the Tooele County Detention Center and is being held without bail.
