In Wellington, Utah, the conversation in the community lately has been around a father, a registered sex offender, and a violent act of vigilante justice that left another alleged criminal with 17 stab wounds. It began at a Utah post office. Investigators say that 32-year-old Thad James Gurule met the eventual victim there a few days ago and a conversation that Gurule claims crossed a line. He says the guy he later stabbed made obscene comments about his minor daughter.
On Monday, Utah police were called to a home in Wellington, after a man was seen on a porch. He was covered in blood, and the first responders said the victim was only a short distance away and was suffering from multiple life-threatening injuries. Doctors later confirmed he had 17 stab wounds.
Even in his condition, the victim spoke to investigators and told them he didn’t know the name of the attacker, just that he had met him before. That clue led investigators to Gurule. When officers questioned him, they learned it was a premeditated attack. After their encounter at the post office, police say Gurule searched his name online and learned the man was a registered s– offender.
According to police, that was the turning point. Detectives say Gurule walked to the stab victim’s apartment pretending to be friendly and inviting him out for food. But the real mission was revenge.
The cops that arrested this father are the one’s that should have justice served against them. Tyranny enforcers and pedo’s.
You talk about my little girl that way, you’re going to wish I only stabbed you 17 times. pic.twitter.com/2493KLG3WE
— Tree of Liberty Society (@TreeOfLibertyS) December 6, 2025
At first, Gurule denied stabbing the other man. But as questioning continued, he admitted to the assault and even acknowledged that he threw the knife away at the scene and that he intended to kill the man to “protect [his] daughter.” The victim was, at that point, barely alive. He told Utah officers that the attacker leaned over him after the stabbing and warned him to think twice before making comments about his daughter again. A bit dramatic, sure, but the intent was clear..
But the investigation didn’t end there.. A search of Gurule’s Utah hometurned up suspected marijuana, methamphetamine, and d—-related paraphernalia. So, along with the attempted murder, d— charges were filed.
In Wellington, it’s undisputed that the victim was a registered sex offender. However, consequences are decided through the legal system. Prosecutors say the evidence points to deadly intent, too. Gurule is sitting in Carbon County Jail after being charged with attempted murder and d—-related offenses, while the victim recovers from the near-fatal attack that nearly ended his life.
But can anything legally justify what the father did?
NEXT UP: Utah Man Sent Love-Obsessed Notes to 13-Year-Old – Now is Accused of Abducting Her
