Mix-up on hearing site spurs a delay in kidnapping case

A preliminary hearing for a man charged with chaining his girlfriend to an engine block inside their West Valley apartment so she couldn't escape was continued after the defendant was transported to the wrong courthouse.

Fernando Orozco-Trevizo, 32, was charged in 3rd District Court with kidnapping and aggravated assault. He also has several aliases and other charges in non-related cases. One of those cases was in Utah County, where Orozco-Trevizo was transported by mistake Tuesday.

In 3rd District Judge Vernice Trease's courtroom, where the hearing on the kidnapping was supposed to be held, attorneys said that Orozco-Trevizo was facing charges before the judge in separate cases under two different names.

The investigation into the kidnapping began Dec. 7 when a woman, who had a chain wrapped around her ankle and the other end fastened to an 800-pound engine, wrote "911" in the condensation on her window at her apartment, near 2900 West and 3500 South. The message caught the attention of her neighbor, who called police after talking to the woman through the window.

Investigators say Orozco-Trevizo beat and choked his girlfriend repeatedly and had her chained to the engine when he went to work so she wouldn't leave.

The woman was in court Tuesday prepared to go ahead with the preliminary hearing. She arrived in a wheelchair. Investigators said she has herniated discs as a result of the injuries she suffered from Orozco-Trevizo.

Orozco-Trevizo's next court hearing is scheduled for Feb. 21, at which time both of the cases he is charged with are expected to be addressed.

---

E-mail: preavy@desnews.com