Strangulation Suspect Arrested In Murrieta's Bear Creek Community

MURRIETA, CA — A Menifee man suspected of strangling his wife in Old Town Temecula has been arrested after a weekslong search and investigation, according to a report from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

The 39-year-old was arrested Thursday afternoon outside of a home in the gated community of Bear Creek in Murrieta, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

As of Monday morning, he remained jailed at the Cois M. Byrd Detention Center and was held on charges of assault resulting in great bodily injury and other offenses, jail records indicated. His bail was set at $500,000.

The arrest stemmed from a March 31 incident in which sheriff's deputies were called to the 28600 block of Old Town Front Street "regarding a suspect who strangled his spouse during a domestic violence incident," according to sheriff's Cpl. Timothy Quick.

"Prior to deputies arriving, the suspect left the location on his motorcycle to an unknown location," Quick said in a news release. "Deputies located the victim, who was transported to a local hospital and treated for moderate non-life-threatening injuries.:

The man, whom Patch is not identifying to protect the identity of his wife, "was a member of an outlaw motorcycle gang and was known to carry firearms," Quick said.

After the attack, sheriff's deputies used the K-9 and aviation teams to check "several locations" to try to find the man, but "he was not located," according to Quick.

Investigators obtained an arrest warrant from a local judge and on Thursday tracked the man down to the 38100 block of Silver Fox Court in Murrieta, Quick said, inside the gated community of Bear Creek.

On Thursday afternoon, acting on a tip, investigators found him at a Murrieta residence in the 31800 block of Silver Fox Court in Murrieta, inside the gated community, Quick said.

He was slated to appear at the Murrieta Southwest Justice Center on Monday.

If you have any information about this crime, please contact the Sheriff’s Southwest Station-Metro Team Deputy Weber at (951) 696-3000.