Etna man charged in alleged attempted murder of fiancée

An Etna man was charged with the alleged attempted murder of his fiancée in Pataskala over the weekend. Deandre D. Bland, 43, of Etna, was arrested Saturday and charged with one count of attempted murder, a first-degree felony.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Licking County Common Pleas Court on Monday, Pataskala police officers were called to an apartment complex in Pataskala for a shots fired call.

Upon arrival, police said the victim claimed she’d returned home from work and Bland was intoxicated when he attacked her. The victim claimed Bland filled the kitchen sink with water, dragged her to the sink and shoved her face in it. The victim alleged Bland stomped on her head as she laid on the floor and when she was able to retreat into a bedroom, Bland allegedly entered the room with a firearm, placed it to her head and said “he was going to kill her whole family.”

The complaint said Bland left the room and allegedly fired four shots, three of which were from the living room into the bedroom where the victim was hiding.

According to police, the defendant drove to the victim’s sister’s home, where they got into a verbal argument. The victim’s sister alleged Bland brandished the firearm toward her and a relative before driving off.

Police said Bland crashed his vehicle in the 8100 block of Bellow Park Drive in Reynoldsburg, striking a fire hydrant, small tree and coming to rest in a nearby driveway. The agency alleged Bland stumbled into the backyard of a home there and was held at gunpoint by a homeowner until police arrived.

According to the agency, Bland allegedly asked the homeowner holding him at gunpoint to “hide the gun because it would come back hot.”

A grand jury will review the case for possible indictment and possible additional charges. If convicted, Bland faces up to 11 years in prison and up to a $20,000 fine.