Felony charges were filed Wednesday against a 36-year-old man accused of threatening to kill his girlfriend and several family members with a knife in Desert Hot Springs.
Juan Valentin Cortez, who was arrested Sunday, was charged with assault with a deadly weapon and criminal threats, both felonies, along with a misdemeanor charge of resisting arrest. He additionally faces sentence- enhancing allegations for using a weapon during a felony and for committing a serious felony.
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Cortez, who’s scheduled to make his initial court appearance Thursday afternoon, is being held at the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta in lieu of $25,000 bail.
Officers were sent to the 66400 block of Seventh Street about 9 a.m. Sunday on a report of a domestic disturbance, according to the Desert Hot Springs Police Department.
A woman alleged that her boyfriend, later identified as Cortez, had pulled out a large hunting knife and used it to threaten her and several family members before leaving the scene.
Officers found Cortez’s truck about a mile away, but he refused to exit the vehicle, police said. The Riverside County Sheriff’s Department SWAT team and California Highway Patrol also went to the scene, and the suspect eventually surrendered.
Cortez has a felony conviction for carrying a concealed dirk or dagger for which he was sentenced to two years probation. Court records show that his probation term ended April 1.
