Bound, gagged man found in Sanpete hayfield

GUNNISON — Investigators say they have a few leads but a lot of unanswered questions after a man was found wandering in a hayfield, bloody, bound and gagged.

About 8 p.m. Saturday in a hayfield between Mayfield and Gunnison, a farmer on a tractor was approached by a man whose wrists were tied together with shoe laces. The man was also gagged with a piece of cloth tied around his head through his mouth and he was "covered in blood," said Sanpete County Sheriff's Sgt. Greg Peterson.

The man had no identification on him and seemed to be in a daze, Peterson said. "He couldn't even tell us his name. He couldn't say anything that made much sense."

Detectives Monday said they believed they had positively identified the man and planned to talk to him again, hoping he was in better shape to be interviewed.

"We're just trying to dig and get information," Peterson said. "No one is positive about anything."

As of Monday, detectives did not have suspects, motive or much of an idea of what had happened to the man.

As for the extensive bleeding, Peterson could not say Monday if the man suffered from any obvious injuries or blunt-force trauma. He noted that police had contacted a man they believe is the victim's brother. If he is who they think he is, the victim has a condition that causes "extremely serious nose bleeds that happen all the time," the sergeant said.

The man was last listed in stable condition after being flown to a hospital in Salt Lake City.

— Pat Reavy