New Delhi: An Indian-origin man from Hyderabad was stabbed multiple times inside a shopping mall in Utah, US, on Monday after the attacker asked him “Are you Muslim?” and targeted him on the basis of his religion, police said in court documents. The Hyderabad resident, admitted to the hospital in a critical condition, has received over Rs 2 crore in donations from around the world to fund his treatment.
According to the West Valley City Police, 37-year-old Syed Sohailuddin was working at a kiosk at the Valley Fair Mall in West Valley City when Peter Michael Larsen approached him at around 3pm. After a brief conversation and asking Sohailuddin whether he Muslim, the suspect asked him for a bottle of water. As Sohailuddin turned around, Larsen started attacking him unprovoked.
The 48-year-old stabbed the victim 15 times before bystanders intervened and subdued the attacker till the police arrived. He was also injured while being restrained and was first treated before being arrested on charges of attempted murder and possession of a deadly weapon.
A man reportedly stabbed a worker at Valley Fair Mall in Utah earlier today but was knocked out by fellow shoppers in short order before police arrived on scene 🥊
"The stabbing happened just before 3 p.m. at a kiosk inside the mall. Police said a male suspect approached the… pic.twitter.com/BdxC0SK69T
— Mrgunsngear (@Mrgunsngear) July 14, 2026
Police said the suspect told them he “intends to kill Muslims” and that he constituted “a substantial danger to the public if released based on his violent actions… ideologies and pre-planned mass casualty events,” USA Today reported.
Sohailuddin was bleeding profusely when police arrived and was transported to a hospital in a critical condition. A GoFundMe page has been set up to fund his medical bills and more than $2,35,000 has already been raised. He has undergone multiple surgeries, according to local reports.
Back home, Sohailuddin’s family in Hyderabad has reached out to local Islamic authorities for assistance.
Majlis Bachao Tahreek Spokesperson Amjed Ullah Khan posted videos with Sohailuddin’s sister-in-law, urging intervention of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and the Indian embassy in the US. The couple have two children.
.@DrSJaishankar Hon'ble Minister for External Affairs, Govt of India,
I request your urgent intervention in the case of Hyderabad resident Syed Sohail Uddin, an employee at Valley Fair Mall, West Valley City, Utah, USA, who was brutally stabbed multiple times in an alleged… pic.twitter.com/VdPAL7qjn0
— Amjed Ullah Khan MBT (@amjedmbt) July 15, 2026
The Indian Consulate General in San Francisco has expressed concern over the incident.
“The Consulate General of India in San Francisco is deeply saddened by the tragic stabbing incident involving an Indian national in Utah. The Consulate is in close contact with the friends and family and stands ready to provide all possible consular assistance. We remain engaged with local authorities and will continue to monitor the matter closely,” the Consulate said in a post on X.
The Consulate General of India in San Francisco is deeply saddened by the tragic stabbing incident involving an Indian national in Utah. The Consulate is in close contact with the friends and family and stands ready to provide all possible consular assistance. We remain engaged…
— India in San Francisco (@CGISFO) July 15, 2026
Muslim rights groups, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations, also condemned the incident.
“This horrific attack is yet another reminder that anti-Muslim rhetoric has real-world consequences. When Muslims are routinely demonized, portrayed as threats, or treated as less deserving of equal rights and dignity, some twisted individuals inevitably act on that hatred,” CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said in a statement on Tuesday.
CAIR, the largest Muslim civil rights organisation in the US, reported a spike in the number of Islamophobic incidents in the US since 9/11 and the Israel-Gaza War.
The organization received more than 8,650 complaints in 2024, the highest number since CAIR began publishing its annual civil rights report in 1996, according to the report released in March 2025.
(Edited by Stela Dey)