An Oregon man wanted on attempted murder and other charges after a woman was found bound and severely beaten last week was in custody Tuesday night, Grants Pass police said.
Benjamin Obadiah Foster, 36, of Wolf Creek, was in custody after a standoff that lasted several hours, police said in a statement. short statement.
A press conference was scheduled for Wednesday. Police officers did not immediately respond to requests for comment or more details as the situation continued.
Foster has been the subject of intense manhunt since Jan. 24, when Grants Pass police officers responded to a home and found a woman who «had been tied up and severely beaten unconscious,» police said at the time. .
Foster was wanted on charges of kidnapping, attempted murder and assault, police said.
The victim was reported to be in critical condition.
Foster tried to kill the woman while «intentionally torturing» her, Josephine County District Attorney Joshua Eastman wrote in a court document.
“I am disgusted by what I know happened,” Police Chief Warren Hensman said last week, according to NBC affiliate KOBI of Medford. «This was an evil act.»
Police said in a Facebook post Tuesday that Foster was seen in the Grants Pass area, apparently walking a dog.
Police had warned that Foster was still using dating apps while police were looking for him, and that he may be doing so to contact unsuspecting people for help.
Two years ago, Foster had been convicted in Nevada of holding another woman captive.
In 2019, Foster held his then-girlfriend captive inside his Las Vegas apartment for two weeks.
He was initially charged with five felony counts, including assault and battery, but in 2021 reached an agreement with Clark County prosecutors to plead guilty to felony and misdemeanor assault.
He was sentenced to between one and two and a half years in prison, but had already spent 729 days in jail awaiting trial and was released.
Grants Pass is a city of about 39,000 in southwestern Oregon, about 25 miles north of the California border.
Law enforcement officers had surrounded a home in the city Tuesday and a crisis negotiator had been on the scene before police announced Foster was in custody. NBC affiliate KOBI of Medford reported.
Hensman, the police chief, last week described the attack as brutal and said his hearts go out to the victim and his family. He said it happened over «an extended period of time.»
“Usually we think this couldn’t happen in our small community of 40,000 people, but this can happen anywhere,” he said.
This is a developing history. Please check for updates.