A US marine has been arrested for stabbing his pregnant wife to death on the side of a highway in Hawaii last week.
Bryant Tejeda-Castillo stabbed Dana Alotaibi multiple times with a knife on Wednesday evening.
“In the area of the H3 west prior to the Kamehameha highway, off-ramp witnesses observed a male standing over a female stabbing her multiple times. Witnesses pulled over and attempted to restrain the male who was in possession of a knife,” said Deena Thoemmes, homicide lieutenant of the criminal investigation division of the Honolulu police department.
Witnesses also tried to render aid to the victim, the official said. But Mr Tejeda-Castillo, an active military member, fled into a nearby bush area.
“Arriving officers were directed to his location and they were able to apprehend him. The male reportedly used the same knife that he was in possession of at the time of his arrest and injured himself,” she said in a press conference.
The accused was placed under arrest by the district crime reduction unit and transported to the hospital where he remains in custody, the Honolulu police official said.
She added that the 27-year-old victim was transported to the Castle Adventist Hospital, but was declared dead later that day.
The woman was three months pregnant, according to a local report by KITV4.
Based on their investigation, officials found that the victim and the accused were going through marital problems.
“At the time of the incident, they were arguing before he stabbed her multiple times that caused her fatal injuries,” the officer said.
She added that local detectives were continuing to process the scene.
“They are also reviewing 911 calls, interviewing multiple witnesses and processing evidence. We are currently working with the department of the prosecutor’s office domestic violence team in seeking charges against the suspect. Our investigation continues,” she said.
Ms Thoemmes added that the detectives probing the case will review past domestic violence cases, both documented and undocumented, as well as social media posts that have been brought to their attention.
Mr Tejeda-Castillo has been charged with second-degree murder, and his bail has been set at $1m.
