Police search for 3 men in armed home invasion

A possible case of mistaken identity may have sparked a home invasion robbery in Salt Lake City early Tuesday.

About 12:40 a.m., three men — all armed with handguns, wearing masks and dark clothing — kicked in the door of a house near 1400 South and 400 East, said Salt Lake police spokeswoman Lara Jones. There were five roommates inside the house at the time. One of them was kicked in the face as the intruders entered, she said.

The men told the victims they were looking for the "black man with the goods," Jones said. A male and female were tied up, placed in an upstairs bedroom with a blanket over their heads.

Two other male victims found in a downstairs bedroom were placed upstairs with the first two, Jones said. The fifth roommate, a female, was in a downstairs bathroom when she heard the commotion at the front of the house and climbed through a window to escape.

The gunmen went through the house and took two laptops, a gaming system and a cell phone, Jones said.

The victims told police they had just moved into the house and had no idea who the gunmen were. One of the victims, however, got into some trouble herself when police found her to be in possession of drugs. The woman was booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for investigation of drug possession with intent to distribute.

— Pat Reavy