An Ammon man was arrested Saturday after he was witnessed beating and choking a woman in a parking lot.
Joel K. Tingey, 36, was reportedly seen pulling a woman out of a truck and slamming her against the side of the truck around 1:50 a.m.
A Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office deputy arrived on scene and identified a truck matching a description given by a witness. According to the probable cause affidavit, he saw a man, later identified as Tingey, in the driver’s seat who was reportedly “trying to hunker down and hide from me.”
Tingey told the deputy everything was fine, but the deputy reportedly noticed a woman in the passenger seat who was crying and had blood covering her face.
The affidavit states Tingey had a large amount of blood on his shirt and a scratch mark on his arm that Tingey said was caused by a tree branch. He later said the scratch was caused by the victim.
Tingey denied that he hit the victim, telling the deputy that he picked her up from a hotel and that she had been drinking that night. He said the victim’s face was injured in a fall. He reportedly told a second deputy that the victim spat on him during the drive.
The deputy observed bruising around the victim’s neck and swelling on her lips and cheeks.
The victim said Tingey had picked her up and was driving her back to a hotel. She said that they parked near the hotel and that as she was getting out of the truck, Tingey reportedly grabbed her.
The victim said she was struggling to remember what happened. She said she remembered Tingey choking her and saying he was going to kill her.
The witness who contacted deputies said she saw Tingey “aggressively” remove the victim from the truck and then shove her face into the side of the vehicle.
Tingey was charged with felony domestic battery, punishable with up to 10 years in prison. He was released from jail after posting a $10,000 bond. A no-contact order was issued between him and the victim.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 1 p.m. June 24 in Bonneville County Court.