A Wildwood man was arrested for battery after allegedly strangling his girlfriend when she tried to stop her daughter from playing with him.
An officer responded to Cypress Commons, located at 775 Huey St., for a battery involving 38-year-old Aaron Lavarus Washington around 1:20 p.m. Monday, according to an arrest report from the Wildwood Police Department.
Upon arrival, the officer met Washington’s girlfriend of 16 years and the mother of his two children. She advised that her daughter had gone into the backyard to play with him at his request. He had a long history of mental illness and recent Baker Acts, so she was wary of her daughter playing with him, the report said.
Washington then got her daughter’s shoes from inside the house and went back outside. He did not answer when his girlfriend asked why he needed the shoes. She feared he would take her daughter somewhere, and given his recent mental state, she was worried about her daughter’s safety. She tried to open the back door to tell her to come inside, but Washington closed the door on her foot, the report said.
She pushed the door open again and shoved Washington out of the way to get to her daughter. He proceeded to grab the front of her shirt and push her into the house, about 15 feet down the hallway. He kept going until she was in the hallway closet where he held her by the throat until she almost passed out, the report said.
He left her with a torn shirt in the front collar area, as well as visible scratches on her chest. She also had marks around her throat, the report said.
Washington was arrested on charge of battery by strangulation. He was transported to the Sumter County Detention Center with bond set at $5,000.