Police say man illegally entered a woman’s house and choked her

Valentin Rivera Islas, 38 | Bonneville County Jail
IDAHO FALLS – A man has been charged with multiple felonies and a misdemeanor after he reportedly broke into his estranged wife’s new house and attempted to strangle her.
Valentin Rivera Islas, 38, appeared in court on July 5 where he was charged with felony malicious injury to property, felony burglary, felony attempted strangulation and misdemeanor domestic violence after an altercation at an Idaho Falls home.
His bail was set at $40,000, which Islas posted and he was released. He was issued a no-contact order for the victim.
According to court records, Idaho Falls Police officers arrived at the home on July 3 after reports there had been a domestic disturbance. A man told police his girlfriend’s ex-husband, Islas, had broken into her home while the two were sleeping.
The man told police that his girlfriend and Islas began fighting after Islas stated he was looking for his .38 pistol.
When officers arrived, the reporting party was standing outside and said that Islas and the woman were still inside. Officers heard commotion coming from the basement, and when they called for the woman to come upstairs, she exclaimed “I’m trying!”, before running up the stairs, shirtless.
Officers called for Islas, and drew their firearms because of previous mentions of a gun. Islas came out of the house and resisted officers, forcing them to take him to the ground before he was put into handcuffs and booked into the Bonneville County Jail.
When officers interviewed the woman, she stated she was still legally married to Islas, but they had been separated for several months, and she had recently moved into the new house to “get away from Valentin”. Police were able to confirm the woman had three previous civil protection orders against Islas, and the most recent had just expired on June 27.
The woman stated that she and her boyfriend were sleeping when Islas came into the house, which had an unlocked front door. The woman stated Islas came into the room, held her against the bed and began to choke her.
She was able to kick him off the bed, and Islas reportedly then began “throwing things around her room, flipping her bed, throwing her television and punching holes in the walls.”
According to court documents, Islas then went upstairs, where he “head-butted” the window in the living room, shattering the window pane. Islas also allegedly went into the kitchen and punched the window pane to the back door, shattering the glass and breaking the wood frame.
The woman told police that at one point, Islas picked up some of the broken glass and began cutting his wrists, telling her “if they were not going to be together she wouldn’t be with anyone.”
The victim’s boyfriend told police he saw Islas originally pushing the woman and heard him say he was looking for his gun, so he ran out of the room to call 911.
Though Islas has been charged with these crimes, it does not necessarily mean he committed them. Everyone is presumed innocent until they are proven guilty.
A preliminary hearing has not yet been set. If convicted, Islas could spend up to 30 years in prison.
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Source: eastidahonews.com