SOUTH SALT LAKE – An alleged attack inside a South Salt Lake hotel leads to a standoff and a suspect being taken into custody.
Lansing Reavely claims to have worked for Uber and says he was dispatched to the Ramada on 2455 South State Street. He says he was asked to go up to the suspect’s room to help bring their luggage down to the car. However, when he walked through the door, he says the suspect pulled out two weapons.
“It was a hand held taser gun and a regular gun… a .45,” Reaveley says, adding,” I walked in, he said,’Have a seat,’ and it happened immediately. He pulled out a taser and said, ‘I’m going to kill you. I’m robbing you. I want your money. I want your phone.’”
Reaveley says he was able to run out of the room after the suspect, Thomas Patrick Cooper of Salt Lake City, looked down at the phone.
Police were called to the hotel and made contact with Cooper.
South Salt Lake Police Officer Gary Keller says, “Our officers did talk to him through the security latch with the door open a little bit. He claimed he found [Reaveley’s] cell phone.”
After almost three hours, police were able to peacefully end the standoff and take Cooper into custody. However, after Cooper was placed in the police car, he claimed Reaveley was the one who attacked first. Copper was booked into the Salt Lake County jail on suspicion of aggravated robbery, unlawful possession of a weapon and offering to commit a sex act for a fee.
Keller says it wasn’t wise for Reaveley to be in that hotel room.
“Never put yourself in a one-on-one with anybody. Always have a motel manager or somebody with you when you go up to the room. If you do go up to the room, never cross the threshold,” Keller says.