A Muslim mall worker was stabbed more than 15 times in Utah in an Islamophobic attack where the suspect admitted to targeting the victim “with the intent to kill him” because of his faith.
Syed Sohail Uddin, 37, was working at a kiosk inside Valley Fair Mall in West Valley City on Monday afternoon local time when he was repeatedly stabbed.
Police arrested 48-year-old Peter Michael Larsen, with court records saying that he told investigators he had targeted Uddin because he was Muslim.
Uddin survived the attack but remains in critical condition after sustaining more than 15 stab wounds. He is expected to face a lengthy recovery and has undergone treatment for severe injuries, according to local reports and a fundraising page established to support his family.
Horrific incident in Utah!
A Muslim brother, Sohail, was stabbed 15 times in a mall by 48 year old Peter Micheal Larson after he asked if he was Muslim.
The result of the political rhetoric we hear. You probably wont see this on mainstream media.
May Allah grant him shifa… pic.twitter.com/cRZaDNKGEj
— Mahdi Rastani (@mahdi_rastani) July 15, 2026
Uddin’s colleagues described him as a hardworking and caring father of two young children.
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“Always smiling, laughing, working very hard,” his manager, Adnan Mohammed, told local news outlet Fox 13.
Mohammed said Uddin had recently been promoted to a managerial position at the mall kiosk and described him as more than an employee. “He’s family,” he said.
Many online shared these sentiments and were outraged by this attack.
Peter Michael Larsen, 48 ans , est le terroriste Americain qui a poignardé 15 fois dans le dos un homme musulman en raison de sa religion, alors que celui-ci s’était retourné pour lui donner une bouteille d’eau à sa demande.
Quelle lâcheté ! Quelle horreur ! https://t.co/2d32YlhSwb
— moonbee (@BMoon_bee) July 15, 2026
Witnesses said Larsen approached Uddin while he was working.
According to Imam Shuaib Din of the Utah Islamic Center, who had been in contact with Uddin’s family, the suspect approached Uddin, asked his name and religion, and requested a bottle of water. As Uddin turned to retrieve it, the suspect began stabbing him.
Luna Nunez, who was working at a nearby jewellery store, said she heard Uddin screaming and rushed to help.
“I was throwing anything I could, shoes, a chair, anything,” she told Fox 13. “He was stabbing him so viciously. I was scared for his life. I was just scared. I thought he was going to die.”
Other shoppers and mall employees intervened during the stabbing, managing to wrestle the knife from Larsen and restrain him until police arrived, according to court records.
Footage circulated online that showed several people surrounding the suspect and beating him unconscious, likely saving the victim’s life in the process.
Intent to kill Muslims
Larsen was arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and carrying a prohibited dangerous weapon.
According to a police booking affidavit, Larsen told investigators that he had “targeted the victim with intent to kill him because of his religion”.
Court documents said he also described himself as a “catalyst” and told officers that he intended “to kill Muslims”.
Investigators said Larsen posed “a substantial danger to the public”, citing his violent conduct, ideology and references to “pre-planned mass casualty events” targeting Muslims.
The statements attributed to Larsen in the court records leave little ambiguity over the Islamophobic motive behind the attack, although prosecutors are still determining the formal criminal charges he will face.
While Larsen has not been convicted and remains a suspect in the criminal proceedings, the religious motive is directly supported by statements attributed to him in police and court records.
Larsen was on parole for a previous violent felony at the time of the stabbing and is being held without bail. The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office is reviewing the investigation and has not yet announced which charges it will pursue.
On social media, many pointed to the wider political climate surrounding the attack, arguing that increasingly normalised racist and anti-Muslim rhetoric has real-world consequences.
Muslim Man Stabbed Over 15 Times
Trump’s racist fearmongering doesn’t just poison minds, it arms terrorists like Peter Michael Larsen; while his supporters excuse the hate, brave strangers chose humanity, saved Sohail’s life and proved courage will always shame bigotry. pic.twitter.com/LrQ7uGqVZ0
— Save Our Citizenships 🔻 (@LetsStopC9) July 16, 2026
The Council on American-Islamic Relations condemned the attack and called on elected officials and community leaders to confront rhetoric that demonises Muslims.
“This horrific attack is yet another reminder that anti-Muslim rhetoric has real-world consequences. When Muslims are routinely demonised, 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.
The attack in Utah has renewed concerns over violence targeting Muslim communities and the language used to describe it.
Prominent American-Muslim scholar and activist Dr Omar Suleiman also drew attention to the attack and the limited attention it had received, warning that anti-Muslim hatred was being “normalised from the very top”.
Peter Michael Larsen, a Trump loving terrorist, stabbed brother Sohail more than 15 times in a Utah mall after asking him if he was Muslim. You probably won’t hear about this in mainstream media or from your politicians enabling this bigotry every day. Shoutout to the brothers… pic.twitter.com/ki53cyWMte
— Dr. Omar Suleiman (@omarsuleiman) July 15, 2026
Anti-Muslim attacks in US
Cair said the stabbing came amid a series of incidents targeting Muslims and Islamic institutions across the US.
The organisation’s latest civil rights report documented 8,683 complaints involving anti-Muslim bias in 2025, the highest annual figure it has recorded since it began publishing the reports in 1996.
In recent weeks, Cair chapters have responded to a string of incidents, including alleged hate-motivated firebombing attacks, anti-Islamic graffiti, threats against a Muslim centre and an arson attack on a mosque.
Its Pittsburgh chapter also welcomed the federal indictment of a Pennsylvania man who allegedly identified himself as a Nazi and threatened to carry out a mass shooting targeting Muslims and several other minority and political groups.
Cair has repeatedly warned that public rhetoric depicting Muslims and Islam as threats creates an environment in which discrimination and violence can flourish.
The Utah stabbing follows a deadly attack at the Islamic Center of San Diego in May, when two teenagers killed three people before taking their own lives.
The attackers opened fire at the mosque complex while children were attending a school located inside it.
A longtime security guard, Amin Abdullah, was among those killed after intervening to stop the attackers from reaching the children. Police said his actions prevented the shooting from becoming significantly worse.
Authorities are investigating the stabbing as a possible hate crime, while Larsen’s reported statements about killing Muslims and his references to mass-casualty attacks have intensified calls for anti-Muslim violence to be treated as a serious and growing public threat.
