Beaufort Co. woman treated at hospital after tenant assaults, chokes her, report says

A woman was taken to Beaufort Memorial Hospital Thursday after a man renting a room in her house allegedly broke into her bedroom, held her down and strangled her, a Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office report says.

Alberto Lozado-Castillo, 33, of Burton, has been charged with first-degree assault and battery. If convicted, the felony charge carries up to 10 years in prison.

He remained in Beaufort County Detention Center Monday on a $10,000 bond. He also was being detained for an Immigration and Customs Enforcement hold, jail records show.

Lozado-Castillo used a knife to break into the victim’s bedroom about five minutes after her husband left for work, the woman told police, according to a recently released report.

He jumped on top of her, pinning her arms down with his knees as he hit her face, grabbed her by the hair and choked her with both hands, the report says. During the attack, he called her a derogatory name, the report says.

She bit the man’s hands to escape from the attack, the report says. He then told her he would kill her and her children if she called the police, the report says.

Deputies said the woman complained of arm and neck pain and had swelling on her right cheek.