Moab man arrested for repeatedly punching victim who was not fighting back, charges say

MOAB, Utah (ABC4) — A homeless Moab man has been arrested and charged after a woman allegedly witnessed him violently assaulting another man who was not fighting back.

Bleys Daniel McNany, 36, has been charged with aggravated assault, assault by a prisoner, interference with an arresting officer, and disorderly conduct.

According to court documents, on Aug. 19, 2025, a woman was driving near 100 W and 100 S in Moab when she saw a man, later identified as McNany, punching another man on the head. She stated that the victim was seated and not fighting back. The woman reportedly pulled over and honked her horn at McNany to get him to stop.

When McNany heard her honk, he allegedly stopped hitting the other man and approached her vehicle. The woman reported that McNany threw his arms up and yelled at her to get her to leave. She started driving away, but she saw in her rearview mirror that McNany went back to assault the victim again.

At this point, the woman turned her vehicle around and began honking at McNany repeatedly. Documents say that he started approaching her vehicle before seeing that she was on her phone, at which point he fled the scene. The woman contacted the police and reported the assault.

According to the arresting officer, the assault was likely to have caused “broken facial bones or brain injuries” due to the fact that McNany allegedly repeatedly struck the victim while he wasn’t fighting back.

The Moab City Police Department responded to the call and, with the assistance of the Grand County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) and a Department of Natural Resources ranger, eventually located McNany hiding in a nearby wooded area. As McNany was being walked out of the wooded area, a deputy witnessed him kick a GCSO investigator, causing him to stumble.

“Due to the dense foliage in the wooded area Bleys [McNany] was found, his body was dirty and bloody. A dirty and bloody footprint was left on the pants of the investigator,” documents say.

As McNany was being loaded into the patrol vehicle, he allegedly fought with law enforcement and resisted. Law enforcement was able to get him into the vehicle, and he was booked into the Grand County Jail, where he is currently being held without bail.

According to the arrest affidavit, this is the third assault that McNany has committed this month involving the same victim. He was charged with misdemeanors on Aug. 5 and Aug. 12 for similar incidents.