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Las Vegas mass stabbing suspect Yoni Barrios escaped criminal charges last year as DA failed to act in time

Barrios had pleaded not guilty in a 2021 domestic violence case but escaped prosecution because the pretrial hearing was not scheduled in a timely manner

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA: Illegal immigrant Yoni Barrios, accused of stabbing eight people and killing two in Las Vegas on Thursday, Oct 6, got off the hook for another violent crime after prosecutors failed to file timely charges. According to court documents, the 32-year-old suspect, an undocumented immigrant from Guatemala, was charged with criminal domestic violence in 2019 by outgoing Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey, Daily Mail reports.

Had Barrios actually been convicted, he most likely would have been jailed and deported, and he would not have been free to commit the gruesome mass stabbing on the Las Vegas Strip this week. Due to California speedy trial laws, the judge was forced to dismiss the case after 90 days because DA Lacey failed to file the complaint in a timely manner.

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Yoni Barrios first asked the group of showgirls on Thursday, October 6, to take a picture of him. When they refused, he began stabbing them frantically. Maris Mareen Digiovanni, 30, was one of the two victims who died in the attack. The 30-year-old died in the arms of her friend Anna, who tried to give her first aid. Two victims were pronounced dead and six were wounded in the broad daylight rampage. The fatalities are Maris Mareen Digiovanni, 30, and Brent Allan Hallett, 47, both of Las Vegas, reports 8newsnow. Barrios was charged with six counts of attempted murder with a deadly weapon and two counts of open murder with a deadly weapon in the CCDC.

According to a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department report, Barrios told investigators after his arrest Thursday that he was from Guatemala and that he wanted ICE to take him home. Barrios was charged in July 2019 with injuring a spouse, cohabitant, or roommate in a domestic violence offense, according to a criminal complaint cited by DailyMail. The maximum penalty for those found guilty of a crime is 4 years in prison. The alleged incident occurred Aug 18, according to Barrios' criminal file. A year later, DA Lacey filed the lawsuit, but the first pretrial hearing wasn't scheduled until April 8, 2021, more than two years later.

According to court records, Barrios pleaded not guilty, and after the trial began, the judge dismissed the case because it had been pending in court for too long. California Penal Code 1381, 1381.5, and 1382 are cited in the LA Superior Court filing as the reason for the dismissal. The California Penal Code requires the prosecution to hold a felony trial within 60 days of the filing of an indictment.

At PC 1382, it states, "The court unless good cause to the contrary is shown, shall order the action to be dismissed in the following cases... In a felony case, when a defendant is not brought to trial within 60 days of the defendant's arraignment."

Had Barrios been tried and found guilty in a timely manner after the complaint was filed in July 2019, he could have spent up to four years in prison and would not have been free to carry out the alleged two murders and six attempted murders for which he was charged this week. A Los Angeles union executive DA rejected Lacey's claim that she "failed to bring him to trial" despite the information on the docket.

Speaking to DailyMail, Eric Siddall, vice president of the Association of Los Angeles Deputy District Attorneys stated, "If the case was thrown out by the judge, it was probably due to witness issues."

Barrios has a second criminal history in Riverside, which is east of Los Angeles. He was arrested in April 2016 for driving without a license and speeding. A citation was issued and a fine was paid. Barrios, who was arrested by LVMPD, lived in Los Angeles and had gone to visit a friend in Las Vegas on Tuesday. However, after they drove back, Barrios went to the Strip and ended up assaulting a number of showgirls to "let out his anger."