Detroit man charged in assault on woman, her 5-year-old son

Taylor — The Wayne County prosecutor has charged a Detroit man in the beating of a 35-year-old woman with a tire iron last Thursday.

He is also accused of beating her 5-year-old son on the same day.

Joel Eloy Santos-Santos, 23, has been charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm, a 10-year felony, felonious assault, which carries a four-year penalty,  fourth-degree fleeing and eluding police, a 10-year felony and domestic violence, a one-year misdemeanor, officials said Monday.

Santos-Santos was formally arraigned in court Saturday and a judge ordered him held on a $7,500 bond, the prosecutor's office said. The judge also ordered Santos-Santos to wear a GPS tether if he posts bond. In addition, the judge scheduled a probable cause conference for next Monday and a preliminary examination for July 13. 

Police said Santos-Santos was arrested after an officer who was in the area of Interstate 94 and Monroe in Taylor saw a female driver exit the freeway and scream for help while pointing to the male passenger in her vehicle at about 7 a.m. on June 25. 

The officer approached the vehicle and the male passenger forced the driver out of the car before driving away from the scene at a high rate of speed. Officials said the woman was visibly injured.

Medics were called and took her to a hospital to be treated, police said. Due to a language barrier, investigators didn't learn from the victim until she was at the hospital that her two children, a five-year-old boy and an eight-month old girl, were in her vehicle's back seat. Santos-Santos is the girl's father.

Meanwhile, the man who fled from police continued traveling into Detroit at high rates of speed until crashing in the area of the Davison Freeway and eastbound Interstate 96, according to authorities.

Police arrived and arrested the man. The two children were taken to a hospital to be treated for their injuries.

Investigators said they allege the man beat the woman in the head and body with a tire-iron as she drove. They also accuse the man of striking her 5-year-old in the head earlier in the day.

cramirez@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @CharlesERamirez