OGDEN — A man who whistled at another man’s wife — or was it at the couple’s dogs? — was beaten with a baton and stabbed for his trouble, according to sheriff’s deputies.

The man told the Weber County Sheriff’s Office that he was sitting on a concrete barrier near a truck stop and a fast food restaurant early Wednesday when he whistled at the couple’s dogs as they were walking nearby. He said the other man became angry and told him not to whistle at his wife.

The man said he tried to explain he was whistling at the dogs, and the woman grabbed his backpack and threw it onto the road. He said he reached around the woman to retrieve his belongings when the other man allegedly took out a baton and struck him on the face and arm.

The man told deputies he fought back, took the husband to the ground and punched him several times in the face. He said the man screamed at his wife to stab him, and she pulled a knife and stabbed him on a shoulder blade.

Deputies and Utah Highway Patrol troopers arrived to break up the fight and interview the combatants.

The husband allegedly admitted he hit the first man with a baton, and he said he had feared the man was going to kill him by punching his head onto the pavement.

The wife told officers her husband said, “Stab him, stab him, he’s going to kill me.” She said she feared for her husband and stabbed the man.

Investigators said in an arrest affidavit that a man nearby provided a corroborating description of the events, further bolstered by surveillance video.

The husband, 37, was booked into jail on suspicion of third-degree felony aggravated assault. The woman was not arrested because deputies said they did not deem her conduct to be criminal.

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