Man charged with assaulting wife, cop

A 22-year-old man remained in jail Monday on suspicion of nine criminal charges, including drunken driving, choking his wife while he drove a minivan and biting and striking a police officer.

The defendant, Enrique LopezAstorga, is accused of striking his wife and choking her with so much force that she lost consciousness, according to a police report. She was treated at Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center for a broken nose and possibly a broken eye socket, the report stated.

Police officers Jared Alire and Derick Romero found the minivan on a sidewalk on Cerrillos Road. The report stated that a confrontation followed, and Lopez-Astorga bit Romero’s arm and struck him the face.

Lopez-Astorga was was being held in lieu of $10,000 bond. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 21.