A 17-year-old Tempe girl was in a medically induced coma Monday after being severely beaten, and police arrested her stepfather in the assault, police said.
At about 10:45 p.m. Sunday, police were called to 3520 S. Shafer Drive. The girl was taken to a hospital, where doctors put her into a coma because she had swelling on her brain. Police did not release the victim’s name or information on her condition.
The suspect, Miguel Hernandez-Lopez, 36, had left the scene by the time police arrived. Tempe police arrested him at 10:15 a.m. Monday at a Scottsdale home after receiving a tip, police said.
He was booked into Tempe’s city jail and later transferred to Maricopa County’s Madison Street Jail in Phoenix, where he was being held without bond on charges of aggravated assault, aggravated assault with disfigurement and child abuse. His initial court appearance had not been scheduled as of Monday night.
Residents of the neighborhood near Southern Avenue and Priest Drive had varying impressions of the household. Some had had trouble with the family, and others were on good terms.
