Rochester Man Suspected of Swinging Machete at Woman Arrested

Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News)- Rochester police arrested a man suspected of swinging a machete at a woman he lives with in northwest Rochester Tuesday night. 

Get our free mobile app

Police Captain Casey Moilanen said officers were called to the incident around 11:45 p.m. The woman calling for help reported hiding from the suspected assailant in a locked bathroom at a residence in the 2000 block of 41st St. Northwest. 

Moilanen said the suspect, identified as 50-year-old Eugenio Jarquin Pena of Rochester, let officers into the residence. One officer went to the bathroom and spoke with the woman who said Pena had been out drinking with friends and returned home while she had been sleeping in the bedroom. 

The woman told officers Pena kicked in the bedroom door, began yelling at her and pulled her off the bed, causing her to hit the floor. She said he then began grabbing at her and pulling her hair before swinging a machete at her multiple times, Moilanen said. 

She reported fleeing into a bathroom and locking the door. Moilanen said she told officers Pena then tried to break into the locked bathroom using a hammer and screwdriver but was unsuccessful.

Moilanen said the woman was never struck by the machete but did suffer a scratch on her arm as a result of the alleged assault. Pena was arrested and brought to the Olmsted County Adult Detention Center on suspicion of felony second-degree assault, threats of violence and domestic assault. 

Moilanen said officers found a machete, hammer and screwdriver at the scene. He also said the lock on the bathroom door was broken during the incident, which caused officers to force open the door.