Couple Charged After They Kidnapped, Tortured 2 Homeless People In Front Of Their Children

A couple was arrested and charged Friday after they kidnapped two homeless people and doused them in gasoline. They also severely beat and tortured them. The incident took place at an apartment in South Salt Lake, Utah, on March 10.

According to the charging documents, the accused, identified as 25-year-old Tausaafia Kayla Fitisemanu and 27-year-old Tymel Devonne Hicks, of Salt Lake City, had tortured the homeless couple in front of their two children inside an apartment.

South Salt Lake police officers had responded to a 911 call after a 29-year-old woman had run to a resident’s door and banged on it while stating that “people were trying to kill" her.

Officers arrived at the scene and found her with a severely bruised face and a strong scent of gasoline coming from her. She told officers that she and a 33-year-old man were beaten by the couple inside a nearby apartment and she had managed to escape, however, the other victim was still inside.

According to charges, police could smell a strong odor of gasoline coming from inside the apartment. The two suspects, along with the two children, were removed from the apartment.

Investigators stated that the incident occurred after Hicks accused the man and woman of stealing his gun. He then proceeded to retrieve another weapon, reportedly a shotgun, and used it to assault both of them. The man informed police that he was also kicked in the head by Hicks.

Fitisemanu had also reportedly kicked, strangled and held a knife at the woman. She also repeatedly pinched her children to make them cry in order to drown out the sound of the woman’s screams. The accused had called three other men to the apartment to help assist with the assault. According to police, only one of them had participated in the assault.

The woman was then forced to undress and get into a bathtub with the other victim, after which, their hands were bound with duct tape and gasoline was poured on them. They were also allegedly ordered to drink gasoline. According to the police, the woman was eventually allowed to leave after she lost consciousness several times. However, while leaving, she was threatened by Hicks who had told her that his gun “had other bodies on it.”

The victims were taken to a hospital after the incident. The man had suffered a spinal fracture and several injuries and bruises on his body, along with a large gash on his head. The woman had suffered a skull fracture, several bruises, and injuries.

Both the accused were charged with two counts of first-degree felony aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery, and second-degree felony aggravated assault. They were being held at the Salt Lake County Jail on a $500,000 bail.