Man jailed in strangling of girlfriend on trip from Redmond
A Madras woman being watched closely by a man passed a note to a Springfield gas station attendant late Friday night, asking him to call 911. Her plea for help led to a traffic stop and the arrest of a 31-year-old man on strangulation and other charges, who is accused of choking his girlfriend on a drive from Redmond.
Springfield police got a call around 11 p.m. Friday from employees at an Albertsons gas station on Main Street in Springfield about suspicious circumstances, said Sgt. Keith Seanor.
A woman had entered the business to use the restroom while a man accompanying her “seemed to monitor her movements,” Seanor said in a news release.
While the man was not paying attention, the woman passed a note to a worker, asking employees to call 911 to help her, the sergeant said. He said the employee “described the female as visibly shaken (as) she drove away from that location.”
A description of the white 2006 Ford Taurus, including license plate 715 FVQ, was sent to area police in an attempt to locate the woman, Seanor said.
Minutes later, a Springfield officer spotted the car heading west on Main Street in downtown Springfield. Seanor said the officer noticed a man apparently in the car as well. Assisting units responded and the car was stopped.
An investigation found the girlfriend of Christopher Cody Spanik had been choked while driving from Redmond to Lane County, police said.
The couple had two children in the car, ages 5 and 6, one of whom told police he witnessed the choking of his mother, Seanor said. While one incident allegedly occurred in Deschutes County, another incident of strangulation took place near the Goodpasture Bridge on Highway 126 in Lane County, the sergeant said.
Spanik was arrested on a strangulation charge – a felony, under the state’s Family Abuse Prevention Act, since it was witnessed by the child, Seanor said. Jail records Sunday showed he’s also being held on charges of fourth-degree assault and menacing.
Springfield Police Department Sgt. Pete Kirkpatrick told TV station KMTR, “They all fall under the Abuse Prevention Act, which is directed at preventing and holding those accountable during domestic violence situations.”
The law allows police to arrest abusers regardless of the scenario or situation surrounding the episode, he said.
Springfield Police Sgt. Richard Charboneau said Monday the couple and her two children recently had been living in Madras and were in the process of buying a house there. She said Spanik originally was from Coos Bay.
Seanor said the investigation into alleged crimes in Deschutes County will be conducted by the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office.
Anyone with information that could help police in the case was asked to contact Springfield police at 541-726-3714.
Deschutes County sheriff’s Sgt. Nathan Garibay said the department is coordinating with Springfield police to ensure any alleged crimes in the county are investigated. He did not have their hometowns but said the pair was not from Central Oregon.
