Mesa, AZ: Police: Suspect brought girlfriend's body to hospital

by Nathan Gonzalez - Dec. 7, 2009 01:13 PM
The Arizona Republic
A Mesa man faces second-degree murder after allegedly strangling his 26-year-old girlfriend, who had an order of protection against the suspect, Mesa police said Monday.

On Sunday morning, Mesa police arrested Dartanion Terrial Stroud at Banner Desert Medical Center in Mesa, where he reportedly took Angelita Francisca Montano's lifeless body for treatment, a police report states.

The incident began about 7:40 a.m., when Gilbert police received a call from Stroud's relatives in Florida, the report states.

The caller told police of had third-hand information that Stroud "called a relative in Florida stating he had killed his girlfriend," the report states. The caller didn't know where Stroud was or where the alleged killing occurred.

Gilbert police then checked the couple's last known addresses, and contacted Mesa police for assistance. Stroud had been staying with a friend's residence in Mesa.

Two hours later, Stroud arrived at the hospital's emergency room with the 26-year-old victim, who was unresponsive. She was pronounced dead at 10:01 a.m.

"The victim had injuries consistent with strangulation," the report states.

Montano's body had evidence of petechiae - broken blood vessels - in the area of her face and "heavy bruising around the neck area," the report states.

When interviewed by Gilbert police, Stroud admitted to being with the woman "when she began to turn purple. (Stroud) told police he did not know his whereabouts when the victim began turning purple."

Stroud and the victim have been seeing each other for about three years and have a 9-month-old child together.

The couple also has a history of domestic violence, with one incident of assault reported in August and another in October, police records show.

Montano received an order of protection from Stroud, but the pair recently had been having consensual contact, police records show.

Chandler police arrested Stroud in February 2008 for an incident that resulted in an April 2008 conviction on misdemeanor criminal damage to property, records show.