A Leesburg man has been taken into custody following another alleged assault on his girlfriend.
Valentino Lamont McMullen was charged with domestic violence by strangulation after the incident on June 3.
According to police reports, officers arrived at an unnamed Leesburg residence around 6:53 a.m. When cops arrived, they found a barefoot woman wearing a multicolored dress yelling into a wooded area. Police identified her as the victim.
The victim told officers that she and her boyfriend, McMullen, had gotten into an argument. When she mentioned calling law enforcement, McMullen allegedly said something like, “I’m going to make it worth it.”
According to the complaint, McMullen then punched the victim in the jaw with a clinched fist before choking her with his hands, crushing her neck to the point that she fought to breathe. McMullen then fled the scene, going north through the wooded area next to their shared home.
While responding officers noticed that the victim’s garment was strained at the neckline, indicating a physical fight, they found no obvious bruising or discoloration from the claimed violence.
During the inquiry, police noted the victim’s substantial lack of cooperation. According to the report, she refused medical assistance and clearly refused to submit a sworn written statement or allow officers to photograph her. Furthermore, a routine lethality evaluation could not be completed due to her refusal to cooperate. Officers saw that woman kept saying she “had things to do and needed to leave.”
Based on the physical evidence and the victim’s first comments at the scene, officers prepared the probable cause affidavit, charging McMullen with domestic battery by strangling.
He was also detained in April for an alleged attack on his girlfriend.
McMullen was placed into the Lake County Jail on a $5,000 bond.
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