KEY WEST, Fla. – A Key West man is facing several felony charges after a domestic dispute turned violent, according to the city’s police department.
Officers arrested Karson Eugene Russell, 32, early Tuesday morning.
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According to an arrest report, Russell’s girlfriend was cleaning the floor of their apartment on 17th Street Monday night when Russell began “badly berating” her and “standing over her (and) yelling at her,” leading her to spray him with the floor cleaner in an attempt to get away from him.
He tried blocking her from leaving, but she was able to come back out, police said; after returning a short time later, the two began arguing again.
According to police, after the woman told Russell that she was calling the police, he grabbed her phone from her hand and threw it — then grabbed her neck and choked her.
His girlfriend “could not breathe and struggled to get away,” the report states.
“While he was choking her, Russell told (the victim) that he was going to kill her and she had no idea what he could do to her,” the arresting officer wrote.
The woman broke free, but Russell blocked the apartment door to prevent her from leaving, police said.
The report states the woman was able to maneuver around Russell and ran outside as he chased after her.
Authorities said a man walking by asked the woman if she was OK and, after she said she was not, told her he was calling police.
After police arrived, the victim told officers that Russell “hit and choked her many times” during their three-year relationship, including when they were living in Montana. The victim declined to seek shelter, police said.
Police said just before 2 a.m., they received word that Russell had returned to the apartment and officers arrived to find the victim in the yard, with Russell “on his knees behind her” and “begging for forgiveness.”
Officers arrested Russell on charges of domestic battery by strangulation, false imprisonment, robbery by sudden snatching and witness tampering. He was also charged with unlawful use of personal identification after police said he stole his girlfriend’s debit card.
Online records show Russell was being held on a $55,000 bond in the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office Key West jail facility as of Tuesday afternoon.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the suspect’s latest bond amount as of late Tuesday afternoon.