Police looking for man who attacked woman outside restaurant

SALT LAKE CITY — The search continued Wednesday for a man who stabbed a woman in the neck outside a Salt Lake City restaurant Tuesday night.

The 40-year-old woman was walking home from the Salt Lake Main Library and took the path behind the Faustina Restaurant, 454 E. 300 South, about 8 p.m. when she said a man grabbed her purse and attempted to run.

The woman tried to hang on to her purse when the man attacked her.

"Suddenly she felt what she described as these punches to her neck, and it turned out the person who was assaulting her was using some sort of sharp-edged weapon," said Salt Lake police detective Dennis McGowan. The woman suffered a deep cut to her neck and behind her ear, but her injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

"She was able to fight back, essentially make a lot of noise, and that caused him to flee soon after the attack began," McGowan said. She then ran into the nearby Faustina Restaurant for help.

McGowan said it wasn't clear Wednesday whether the attack was completely random.

Detectives were looking Wednesday for a white man, about 5 feet 7 inches tall, with brown hair and facial stubble. The only other description provided to police was he was wearing dark clothing.

Anyone with information on the robbery can call police at 801-799-6397.

— Pat Reavy

Twitter: DNewsCrimeTeam