Suspect in Las Vegas stabbing spree told cops he thought women were laughing at him and attacked random victims to 'let the anger out'

Police outside the Wynn hotel.
Police work at the scene where multiple people were stabbed in front of a Strip casino in Las Vegas, Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022.Rachel Aston/Las Vegas Review-Journal via AP
  • Police arrested a man accused of killing two and injuring six in a stabbing spree in Las Vegas.

  • The man told police he began stabbing strangers after he thought a group of showgirls laughed at him.

  • He said he was looking for other groups of people to stab in order to "let the anger out."

The man accused of killing two people and injuring six others in a Thursday stabbing spree on the Las Vegas strip told police that he was moved to violence after a group of women dressed as showgirls declined to take a photo with him, according to a police report.

Yoni Barrios, 32, was arrested following the attack and told police that he wielded a knife on strangers because he wanted to "let the anger out." He also told authorities that he was hoping responding police would shoot him, according to a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department report obtained by Insider.

Authorities say Barrios stabbed eight people around 11:40 a.m. local time Thursday on the sidewalk outside the Wynn Las Vegas hotel. Two of the victims, Brent Allan Hallet, 47, and Maris Mareen DiGiovanni, 30, died as a result of their wounds.

Three of the remaining victims were in critical condition as of Thursday night, officials said.

Barrios told officers that he traveled to Las Vegas from California the day before the attack with plans to stay with a friend in town. But after he arrived, Barrios said his friend informed him that he actually couldn't stay there, prompting Barrios to pack his things and head for the famous Las Vegas strip, according to the police report.

Barrios said he went to the mall inquiring about a ride back to California and then stopped at the Wynn to ask about a possible job. He told police that he asked a janitor at the hotel to contact ICE because he wanted to be sent back to Guatemala, the police report said. Barrios also tried to sell his collection of knives while at the Wynn, according to authorities.

When he left the hotel, he encountered a group of women dressed as showgirls on the sidewalk and asked to take a photo with them, he told police. Barrios said he told the women he was a chef and removed one of his knives for the photo.

Due to the odd request, the women declined to take the photo, according to witnesses and other victims interviewed by police, prompting Barrios' rage. He told authorities that he believed the women were "laughing" at him and making fun of his clothes. He stabbed one of the women in the chest and then began chasing after the other showgirls with his knife as they ran away, he told police.

Unnamed victims interviewed by police said the woman he stabbed in the chest was DiGiovanni, who was pronounced dead after being taken to a local hospital.

After he attacked the showgirls, Barrios said he started running and looking for other groups of people to stab in order to "let the anger out."

A surviving victim told police that Barrios said "sorry, man" before stabbing him in the back and running past him.

Barrios is being held without bail following a Friday court appearance and is due back in court on Tuesday.

Read the original article on Insider