Coral Gables Police Officer Cristino Perez Charged With Domestic Battery
MIAMI (CBSMiami) - A Coral Gables police officer was arrested after a fight with his girlfriend reportedly turned violent.
According to his arrest report, Cristino Perez and his girlfriend of three years were in bed Sunday night when they began arguing about infidelity issues. She reportedly became upset, pushed him in the back, and went to the living room to sleep on the couch.
The argument continued in the living room where Perez told her she had to leave.
As she prepared a place on the couch to sleep, they both reportedly began to struggle over a blanket. She fell to the ground and Perez began to choke her, according to the report.
She reportedly kicked him to get him to stop and then he went back to the bedroom. The woman told her son to call the police.
When she went into the bedroom to get her phone Perez reportedly grabbed it. He then went to the woman's son's room and grabbed his phone, according to the report.
He then walked back to the bedroom while the woman went to a third bedroom.
The next day when she tried to get the phones back, he refused to give them up and told her she had to leave.
When the woman went back to the third bedroom, Perez followed her, again telling her she had to leave.
He then reportedly punched a hole in a bedroom window.
The argument then moved to the front of the house, where Perez grabbed her by her robe and slammed her against a wall, according to the report. He then reportedly went back to his bedroom and returned with his duty handcuffs and cuffed her wrist. He then dragged her to his bedroom by the handcuff, according to the report.
The woman's son tried to intervene to no avail.
In the bedroom, Perez unlocked the handcuffs and allowed her to go to the third bedroom so she could pack up her belongings and leave, according to the report.
The police arrived and Perez was taken into custody. He's been charged with domestic battery strangulation, false imprisonment, tampering with a witness, and battery.
During his bond court hearing, he was ordered to have no contact with the woman, must stay at least 500 feet away from her at home, at the boy's school and place of employment, and he must not use, purchase or carry a firearm or ammunition. He must also immediately surrender any firearms.
"I immediately relieved him of duty with pay pending the decision by the State Attorney's office to formally charge the officer. Officer Cristino Perez has been relieved of duty following his release on bond today. The Internal Affairs Section of the Coral Gables Police Department is also concurrently investigating the incident," said Coral Gables Police Chief Ed Hudak in a statement.