A 37-year-old New Mexico man allegedly assaulted his wife in their Las Cruces apartment after she refused to be intimate, then told their five children that a new father would rape them. Police arrested Alfred Sanchez following reports from the victim, children, and a relative. He faces charges of aggravated battery and multiple counts of battery against a household member.
Alfred Sanchez, 37, from Dona Ana County, New Mexico, is accused of attacking his wife on a Sunday night at their Las Cruces apartment, with their five children present. According to a probable cause affidavit, the wife told police she was unwell and declined his sexual advances, prompting Sanchez to berate her for three hours. He then allegedly ripped off her eyeglasses, threw them down, choked her neck while pushing her into the couch, and instructed the children to go to their room. Sanchez reportedly pinned her down, punched her repeatedly, and slammed her head into the ground twice. As she suffered a panic attack, he apologized, said 'I have to go,' and left the home. Later that night, he returned and kicked open the front door; the wife escaped to a neighbor's house. During the assault, she was on the phone with her sister-in-law, who heard Sanchez threaten that in a divorce she would exchange sex for child support, blame her for his past arrests and job loss, and ask if she wanted him to 'kill her and the kids.' He also warned the children, 'If they were to get a new dad … the new dad was going to rape them.' The 9-year-old daughter told investigators she heard yelling and saw her father push her mother, then cried. The 6-year-old son described his father breaking the door, fighting, punching, elbowing, and throwing his mother to the ground. Sanchez was arrested and charged with aggravated battery against a household member resulting in great bodily harm, plus four counts of battery against a household member. He appeared in Las Cruces Magistrate Court on Monday and was ordered held without bond. Sanchez has an open case with the New Mexico Children, Youth & Families Department and a prior charge of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.