Port Orange, FL - A Volusia County Fire Services lieutenant was arrested Monday after Port Orange police say he beat and choked his girlfriend because he believed she was cheating on him.
35-year-old Stephen Szabo is accused of dragging his girlfriend by her hair, choking her, and slamming her head into a mirror after looking through her phone. According to police reports, Szabo had been drinking with friends before the incident, and he also damaged his girlfriend's property, including her glasses.
Police responded just after midnight on Monday to Szabo's girlfriend's Port Orange apartment, where the incident occurred, after a neighbor called about a domestic disturbance. The girlfriend originally told police that she and Szabo only had a verbal argument. She showed no visible signs of injury at that time.
During a follow-up investigation, Szabo's girlfriend did show signs of injury and bruising all over her body, according to police reports. She told police that after speaking with family and seeing the extent of her injuries, she wished to report what had happened, and she gave an account of the alleged abuse. The girlfriend told authorities that when police first arrived on the scene, Szabo told her, "I'm gonna go to prison over you." She said she was hesitant to report the incident because she didn't want to cause problems for Szabo at work.
Szabo was arrested Monday night at his place of work in Pierson and is charged with felony domestic battery.
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