Alleged Las Vegas Strip mass stabbing man could face death penalty

Posted: January 9, 2025, 04:33 pm.

Last updated: 9 January 2025, 04:33 PM.

A man accused of stabbing two victims to death and killing six others on the Las Vegas Strip reportedly faces the death penalty if convicted, according to court documents.

The defendant, 34-year-old Yoni Barrios, who previously lived in California, is scheduled to appear in court Thursday for a hearing on 15 charges, including murder, attempted murder, battery and terrorism, for the Oct. 6, 2022 stabbing.

Prosecutors may reveal sentence soon

Prosecutors handling the case are expected to reveal Thursday whether they will seek the death penalty if he is convicted, according to Las Vegas TV station KLAS.

The incident began when Barrios approached street performers near the Wynn Las Vegas, posing as showgirls. Holding a foot long knife, he asked them to take photographs.

He claimed they refused and started laughing at him. Prosecutors said he responded by stabbing two artists and then indiscriminately attacking six other people.

Two of the victims, Brent Hallett, 47; of Canada, and Maris DiGiovanni, 30, of Las Vegas, both died of their wounds.

Initially, Barrios was declared incompetent to stand trial. But last month, after two years of treatment in a psychiatric hospital, Clark County District Court Judge Christy Craig ruled him competent to stand trial, and he was indicted by a Clark County grand jury.

Craig concluded that Barrios now understands the charges against him and can assist attorneys in his defense.

According to news reports, victims who survived the attack later said that the women were not laughing at him, but were frightened by the situation.

Barrios was captured by Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) officers following the attacks. According to KLAS, he told police he was living in California, and was trying to sell the knives to earn enough money so he could move back home.

Shortly before the stabbing, Barrios had attempted to get a job as a janitor at the Wynn Las Vegas, KLAS reported.

illegal immigrants

It was also reported New York Post Barrios previously worked as a stripper. He was also identified as an illegal immigrant to the US from Guatemala Post Informed.

On October 8, 2023, during a well-attended campaign rally in Minden, Nev., Donald Trump called Barrios a “sadistic killer” who went on a “heinous” stabbing spree.

The criminal was an illegal alien with a criminal record in California a mile long,” Trump said. “But the bloodthirsty killer was unknown to law enforcement because of California's barbaric sanctuary city policies.”

Nevada allows execution of some convicted criminals. Nevada last executed Daryl Mack in 2006, who was convicted of a 1988 sexual assault and murder in Reno.