Man who allegedly held Millcreek family hostage for months charged with 13 felonies

MILLCREEK, Utah (ABC4) — The man accused of holding his girlfriend and her family hostage for months has been charged by the Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office.

Dominic Garcia, 23, has been charged with 20 counts, 13 of which are felonies. The charges are:

• Two counts of felony aggravated sexual assault
• Seven counts of felony aggravated kidnapping
• Two counts of felony aggravated sexual extortion of an adult
• Two counts of felony aggravated assault
• One count of misdemeanor voyeurism
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• One count of misdemeanor child abuse
• One count of misdemeanor assault of a pregnant person
• Four counts of misdemeanor cruelty to animals

Documents reveal more of what the family endured

The family told police that Garcia and his girlfriend moved into her parents’ residence in January 2025. They lived there alongside her parents and two siblings. Garcia would reportedly frequently brag about a business he had with his mother’s boyfriend involving “shady things.”

On February 16, Garcia allegedly arrived at the home with blood on his clothes and bruises on his face. He told the family that his mother’s boyfriend was a drug dealer and had been physically abusing her, so his cartel grandfather shot and killed him. Garcia said that because of this, people were coming after his family and people connected to them. He claimed that they had to leave that night or they would be killed.

The family left the Millcreek home and fled to Park City, and another family member who did not live at the home joined them there, as they were concerned for her safety. According to police, Garcia moved the family around between Airbnbs in Park City, Panguitch, Hurricane, and Kanab for the next month.

While in Panguitch, Garcia instructed a family member to purchase a shotgun and a 10 mm firearm. The family told police that he “always had a firearm within reach and would play with the guns.” Garcia would take apart, put together and “chamber the firearm in front of the family,” according to documents.

While in Kanab, Garcia collected all of the family members’ cell phones while holding a firearm. He allegedly stated that he was going to place listening devices to monitor them, and they were lucky he had not killed them like he was told to while brandishing a firearm. Garcia told the family “if they did not follow their plan or rules, they would all be killed.”

The family returned to the Millcreek home with Garcia in March. All of the family members except two were forced to quit their jobs, and all had to ask permission before leaving the residence for any reason. While with the family, Garcia also reportedly “kicked and strangled” the family’s two dogs on multiple occasions.

Garcia punished one of the family members by holding her head under ice water for 30 seconds and forcing her to do “vigorous workouts multiple times a day for several months as punishment for telling her friends about the situation.” During these workouts, he would sometimes throw a football at her, causing injuries. He also shot another family member with a BB gun, leaving “welts on her body.”

The girlfriend of Garcia told police that he threatened her family when she did not engage in sexual relations with him. On March 12, she would discover that she was pregnant with Garcia’s child. He would throw a glass bowl at her while she was pregnant when she refused to have sex with him at one point.

He also pressured the family into giving him thousands of dollars to rent “super cars to be able to do business deals.” The costs for the car rentals, Airbnbs, travel, firearms and ammunition added up to more than $36,600.

On May 17, 2025, the family contacted police and told them that “they weren’t able to take it any longer.” Officers were told that the family had been held hostage for months and were now holding Garcia at gunpoint until authorities arrived.

But none of the threats were true

The Unified Police Department made contact with Garcia’s mother and her boyfriend. His mother told police that her boyfriend had never been shot and was “very much alive.” When they spoke with Garcia’s grandfather, he said that he did not kill the boyfriend and was never involved in the cartel.

In a police interview with Garcia, he admitted that he had forced the family to flee their home because of his claims. He also allegedly said that he “did not believe that he was in danger or anyone was coming after him” at any point. The whole thing had been a lie, and he continued building on it.

“Garcia admitted that he lied about having cartel ties… he knew he was causing trauma and suffering to [the family]. Garcia admitted that he forced [family member] to work out as a punishment and told her to get into ice baths,” the charging document reads.

Garcia is currently being held without bail at the Salt Lake County Jail. His first court appearance is set for June 2, 2025.