Broken Arrow Police Arrest Man Accused Of Attacking Girlfriend With Hatchet

Broken Arrow Police arrested a man accused of attacking his girlfriend with a hatchet and strangling her. Officers say this is just the latest in a spike of domestic violence situations.

Investigators say they relied on social media and tips from the public to find 41-year-old Aaron Martin.

“In this case, getting this victim away from the suspect helped out to possibly save her life,” said Ethan Hutchins, public information officer for Broken Arrow Police.

Police say Martin attacked his partner with a hatchet and strangled her.

Investigators say this is just another domestic violence case in Broken Arrow. Police say the city has seen a nearly 10% spike in domestic violence calls in the last year.

Officers say 40% of the city’s homicides this year stem from domestic violence.

Counselors with Domestic Violence Intervention Services say it is not uncommon to see an abuser use a weapon to incite fear. They say the scary part is that it often leads to further escalation.

“When individuals escalate to using a weapon, there’s a higher lethality rate for that,” said Rose Turner, DVIS Tulsa.

Turner points to a recent study that shows once a person is strangled by their abuser, their risk of dying increases to 750%.

Martin was arrested for domestic assault and battery by strangulation and with a dangerous weapon. Records show he previously spent time in prison for drug charges.

DVIS counselors want everyone to know there are resources for domestic assault victims looking to get out of their situation. People can begin by texting “START” to 88788.