POCATELLO — A 42-year-old local man has been charged with two counts of felony aggravated assault after police say he smashed a woman’s car with a hammer during a late-night dispute outside a Pocatello residence, threatening her and a second woman who was inside the vehicle at the time.

Jose Pedro Alvarez Hernandez, of Aberdeen, has been charged with two counts of felony aggravated assault and one count of misdemeanor malicious injury to property following the Sunday night incident, according to police and court records the Idaho State Journal recently obtained.

Officers were dispatched to a Pocatello residence around 11:33 p.m. June 21 after a woman called police to report a disturbance involving a man with a hammer, police said. Upon arrival, officers observed a silver Nissan Altima with severe damage to its taillights, rear driver’s side window and rear window, with glass covering the interior of the vehicle, according to the police report.

A woman at the scene told officers she had arrived at the residence and that a dispute broke out, after which Alvarez Hernandez went outside and began striking her car with a hammer, police said. She told officers Alvarez Hernandez was yelling at her while swinging the hammer from 10 to 15 feet away and that she moved away from him because she was scared, according to the police report. When asked whether Alvarez Hernandez was trying to scare or hurt her, she told officers “both,” police said.

A second woman, who had been sitting inside the Nissan when Alvarez Hernandez began smashing the windows, told police she felt extremely threatened and feared for her safety as he swung the hammer, describing him as visibly angry and shouting in Spanish, according to the police report. She said she witnessed Alvarez Hernandez get face-to-face with the other woman while holding the hammer and told officers she feared for both of their lives, police said.

Officers spoke with Alvarez Hernandez, who admitted he had damaged the Nissan and gotten into the woman’s face and argued with her, the police report says. When asked whether things had gotten physical between them, Alvarez Hernandez replied that he had thought about it, police said. Officers translated the arrest details to him in Spanish, and he was placed in handcuffs without incident, according to court records.

Alvarez Hernandez appeared before 6th District Magistrate Judge David A. Hooste via video conference from the Bannock County Jail for an arraignment hearing Monday where his bond was set at $10,000. He is scheduled to appear in court again July 6 for a preliminary hearing. Prosecutors will attempt to present sufficient evidence to elevate the case from magistrate to district court for trial.

If convicted of both counts of felony aggravated assault, Alvarez Hernandez faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.