Lang
11/3/24
A Tiffin man is accused of holding a woman in his car against her will while threatening to kill her.
According to Coralville Police, just after 11:30 Friday night the woman’s parents told police 18-year-old Joseph O’Brien of Bear Drive was holding their daughter in his car somewhere in the area of Glen Oaks Drive and Oakdale Boulevard. The parents claimed the two were both intoxicated and had been fighting.
The alleged victim told investigators that O’Brien had refused her requests to let her out of his 2014 Subaru Outback, instead reportedly telling her he was going to take her out of the country, and later that he would take her somewhere where her parents couldn’t find her. At one point,
O’Brien allegedly told her he was going to kill her by intentionally crashing his car into a light pole.
Police say at one point O’Brien slapped the woman and grabbed her wrist, telling her he wouldn’t let her go until he got to see her phone.
Investigators report finding multiple containers of alcohol in the back seat of the vehicle. O’Brien allegedly admitted to drinking and showed signs of impairment, but his breath alcohol level was only measured at .063%…below the legal limit required for an Operating While Intoxicated charge.
O’Brien is charged with False Imprisonment, 1st Degree Harassment and Assault Causing Bodily Injury. If convicted on all counts, he faces a maximum of four years in jail.