Pregnant teen held, beaten by boyfriend for days, Ceres police say

CERES -- A pregnant teenager suffered nine days of being beaten, choked and threatened by a boyfriend jealous over finding a message from another man on her cell phone, police said.

Richard Garibay, 21, faces charges of false imprisonment, making terrorist threats and spousal abuse after his arrest Tuesday. His 18-year-old girlfriend, who is 12 weeks pregnant, has been released from the hospital and her fetus appears to be unharmed, Deputy Police Chief Michael Borges said.

Garibay, outraged after finding a text message from another man on the victim's phone Jan. 27, began beating her, striking her in the face and body and threatening her with a gun, police said.

As the abuse progressed in the bedroom of a home in the 1700 block of Richland Avenue, a friend of Gari-bay's came into the room and helped him restrain her, Borges said. The victim said they used masking tape and a tie to bind her arms and legs, and then discussed how they would dispose of her body.

The men continued to make threats against the victim and her family, and used a knife to intimidate her, the victim said. They burned her with a lighter and at one point tried to strangle her, Borges said.

Victim: He was high

The victim told police she thinks Garibay was using methamphetamine when he attacked her.

The majority of the abuse took place the first day, but the victim said she was too terrified to leave the home. Finally, on Saturday, she asked her boyfriend if she could leave and he told her he didn't care, Borges said.

Her family took her to a hospital, where she was treated for her injuries. Some of the signs of physical abuse had faded in the nine days she was held captive, but bruises and burns from the lighter were visible.

The victim notified police; Garibay was arrested Tuesday when he went to court on an unrelated matter.

Ceres police officers, including the Ceres SWAT team, street crimes unit and crisis negotiation team served a search warrant at the Richland Avenue home Tuesday.

Inside they found a 5.7-caliber handgun capable of penetrating a bulletproof vest, a stolen TV and methamphetamine, Borges said.

Two men in the home at the time of the raid were arrested, including the man suspected of helping Garibay restrain and abuse the victim, Borges said.

Armando Osegueda, 20, of Ceres was arrested on charges of making terrorist threats and being an accessory to false imprisonment and spousal abuse.

Jose Osegueda, 35, of Ceres was arrested on charges of possession of a controlled substance for sale, unlawful possession of a controlled substance while armed and possession of stolen property.

The Ceres Police Department asks anyone with information about the case to contact Detective Derek Perry at (209) 538-5730 or the Stanislaus Area Crime Stoppers at (866) 602-7463 (60-CRIME).