A man in Utah is accused of keeping his pregnant girlfriend and her family hostage for six months by claiming that members of a “cartel” were after them.
Dominic Garcia, 23, was taken into custody on Saturday and charged with 28 counts, mostly felonies. These included seven counts each of kidnapping and assault, as reported by The Associated Press.
“He claimed ‘his people’ were watching and any defiance could result in their deaths,” she continued.
Garcia allegedly started carrying a handgun around the house and continuously told family members that the cartel would harm them if they didn’t follow his instructions.
One victim purchased a handgun that Garcia began carrying around, according to a probable cause statement. (KSTU)
Garcia is also accused of forcing his alleged victims out of the home for a month under the pretense that his family had made a bad deal with the cartel and needed to flee.
Upon their return, a family member texted a friend to explain where they had gone, KSTU reports. Upon seeing the text, Garcia allegedly lashed out, later claiming he’d brought one of the hostages “into the company” and that he’d kill them if they went astray.
Garcia “created an atmosphere of fear and control,” Sgt. Aymee Race said. (KSTU)
Family members also accuse Garcia of checking their phones and confronting them over messages he didn’t approve of and limiting who could leave the home and for how long. He is also said to have run a “boot camp”-like operation that entailed working out five times a day, taking ice baths and facial submersion to the point where family members were left unable to breathe.
Garcia, who as of Monday was being held without bail, “said that he continued this lie for several months because he did not know how to stop it in fear that they would not like him,” the police affidavit reads.
Sgt. Race declined to provide any additional comment on the case when reached by Fox News Digital.
The Associated Press and KSTU contributed to this report.
