Man faces charges after woman calls for help

A town man faces a number of charges after what Saugerties police described as a domestic dispute.

SAUGERTIES >> A town man faces a number of charges, including criminal contempt and criminal obstruction of breathing, after what Saugerties police described as a domestic dispute at a home on Highland Avenue early Sunday morning.

Police said a woman who said had locked herself in the bathroom after being struck by a man at 17 Highland Avenue called police around 1:18 a.m., and as officers arrived on the scene, a 911 dispatcher told them the woman had screamed just before the phone disconnected.

Authorities entered the home, and the victim told them that Richard J. Delgado, 42, of Saugerties, had choked her, stole her wedding rings, punched her in the head and blocked her from grabbing her cell phone to call for help.

Delgado was charged with the criminal contempt, criminal obstruction of breathing, and criminal mischief, all misdemeanors, and harassment, a violation, police said.

A “no harassment order” had already been issued by a court as a result of a previous incident, according to police, who said they also seized a number of firearms from the home.

Delgado was arraigned in Saugerties Town Court and later released with tickets to appear in court Wednesday. A stay-away order of protection was issued on behalf of the victim.