Slain Wife Went into Hiding and Lived in Fear of Husband After Just a Few Months of Marriage

The Arlington Heights woman who died Wednesday after she was struck in the head by a hatchet had been hiding from her husband in Wisconsin for weeks.

The couple had been married for just a few months, according to police.

Mount Pleasant police told reporters that her husband found her hiding at a friend’s house, dragged her from the house, attacked her with the hatchet and took her to the Super 8 motel where he was staying. She was struck in the face, neck, head and body with the hatchet.

The husband has been identified in Racine County Jail records as Cristian Loga-Negru, 38, and he’s being held in the jail on a $1 million bail. He’ll face charges of mayhem with a deadly weapon — a charge lodged when deliberate disfigurement is intended — kidnapping and first degree intentional homicide while armed. He’s due in court Friday afternoon.

“She actually came to Mount Pleasant to try and hide from her husband because she feared for her safety. A very traumatic incident occurred, and as a result a woman lost her life,” Mount Pleasant Police Sgt. Eric Relich said.

Loga-Negru’s booking photo shows scratches on his face.

The wife, 36, has not been publicly identified pending notification of her family. The woman had obtained a restraining order against her husband and weapons were removed from the man’s house, according to police.

The Racine County Eye reports that the woman was returning to her friend’s house at 8:20 p.m. after going somewhere to pick up the friend’s dog.

“The suspect was hiding out at the house and waited for her to come back,” Relich said. “It is unknown how the suspect discovered where the victim was staying.”

He dragged her to his car. Her screams alerted neighbors who called 911. The husband drove to the nearby Super 8 motel, 1150 Oakes Road. At about 9:30 p.m., the man’s father reportedly alerted the motel manager to call police. The woman was seen bleeding in the back seat of the vehicle.

She was flown by Flight for Life to a nearby hospital but died at about 10 p.m. Wednesday.

Police arrested Loga-Negru at the motel without incident.

Loga-Negru’s LinkedIn profile states that he’s in the trading and financial services business. He claims in his profile that he attended law school and expected to earn an MBA next year.

Loga-Negru also claims in his profile that he served three years in the U.S. Army in a counterintelligence unit. The Daily Herald obtained Loga-Negru’s military record via a Freedom of Information Act request, and his personnel file states that he was a human resources specialist who received the Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal and the Overseas Service Ribbon. He served from 2007 to 2010.

The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the woman sought a temporary order of protection in Cook County on Nov. 3, and a judge awarded her exclusive use of their Arlington Heights home. She was expected back in court Monday to make the restraining order permanent.

Arlington Heights police told the Tribune that officers responded to the couple’s home on three domestic abuse calls this year.

“I can tell you we are familiar with the couple,” said Arlington Heights police Sgt. Rich Sperando, who said the wife was trying to get out of the relationship.

Neighbors told NBC Chicago they also knew there was trouble in the household, and that Loga-Negru was not a friendly man.

“Everyone in the building, they say hi to each other and stuff,” neighbor Stephanie Gomez told NBC Chicago. “We are all civil, and this guy was just there. He was just rude.”

Loga-Negru has been married before, reports Fox 6 News in Wisconsin. Loga-Negru had recently divorced prior to marrying the woman he’s accused of killing, and his attorney told the news station he was married at least once before that, too.

A candlelight vigil for the slain woman will take place near the motel on Friday at 5:30 p.m.

PRESS CONFERENCE VIDEO VIA RACINE COUNTY EYE

» RELATED: Dog Missing from Scene of Woman’s Murder (on RacineCountyEye.com)