Yoni Barrios Avoids Death Penalty for Deadly Stabbings on Las Vegas Strip

Posted on: February 1, 2025, 10:27h. 

Last updated on: February 1, 2025, 10:27h.

The man who killed two people and slashed six others near the Wynn Las Vegas casino entered guilty pleas this week.

Yoni Barrios
Yoni Barrios, pictured above during a prior court appearance. He’s expected to be sentenced to life in prison. (Image: KSNV)

Yoni Barrios, 34, is expected to be sentenced to life behind bars, without the chance for parole, during a March hearing. He avoided being given the death penalty for the October 6, 2022 crimes, according to local news reports.

Claims Emotional Illness

Under Thursday’s plea deal, he admits guilt, but says he was mentally ill when the attacks took place.

The plea deal “recognizes what everybody in the system knew — that this was the result of mental illness that caused paranoia,” Barrios’ attorney, Scott Coffee, told reporters following a court appearance. Coffee is a Clark County deputy public defender and past president of Nevada Attorneys for Criminal Justice.

Barrios pled guilty to murder, attempted murder, battery, and terrorism counts, according to news reports.

The victims were street performers appearing as showgirls, as well as tourists on the Las Vegas Strip.

Barrios initially approached those dressed as showgirls and asked if they would pose with him for a photo. He was dressed in a chef’s jacket and wanted to hold a foot-long knife in the picture.

The street performers refused, and moved away from Barrios. But he “thought the women were laughing at him and making fun of his clothing,” according to a Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) arrest report.

He began to stab both showgirls and nearby pedestrians until he was apprehended by LVMPD officers.

The victims who died from the stabbings were Brent Hallett, 47, of Canada, and Maris DiGiovanni, 30.

The survivors of the attack later said the women weren’t laughing at him, but were frightened of the situation, according to news reports.

Hospitalized for Two Years

Barrios initially was found unfit to stand trial. But after two years of treatment at a psychiatric hospital, Clark County District Court Judge Christy Craig ruled in December that Barrios was competent to assist in his defense and was able to understand the charges against him. He was indicted by a Clark County grand jury on 15 counts.

Barrios told police he was trying to sell knives to earn enough money so he could travel back home to California, according to Las Vegas TV station KLAS.

Shortly before the stabbings, Barrios attempted to get a janitor’s job at the Wynn Las Vegas, KLAS reported.

It also was reported by the New York Post that Barrios had worked previously as a stripper. He also was identified as an illegal immigrant into the US from Guatemala, the Post reported.

On Oct. 8, 2023, during a well-attended campaign rally in Minden, Nev., Donald Trump called Barrios a “sadistic murderer” who went on a “heinous” stabbing spree.

The perpetrator was an illegal alien with a criminal record a mile long in California,” Trump added. “But the bloodthirsty killer was unknown to law enforcement because of California’s barbaric sanctuary city policies.”