Crime & Safety

Oakdale Police Arrest Man for Strangling Woman Outside Liquor Store

His blood-alcohol level was .404, according to the criminal complaint.

A Moorhead man, whom police say had a blood-alcohol level five times the legal limit, has been charged with strangling a woman outside an Oakdale liquor store.

Paul Allen Engelstad, 39, remained in the Washington County Jail on Tuesday, charged with domestic assault by strangulation. The charge is a felony with a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

According to the criminal complaint, Oakdale police were called to Sgt. Peppers Grille & Bar just after 12:30 p.m. Nov. 11 after the bar’s owner reported he had ejected Engelstad and his female companion after Engelstad caused a “disturbance” at the bar.

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The bar owner told police he saw Engelstad and the woman get into a pickup truck, and that he saw Engelstad—who was in the driver’s seat—punch the woman several times in the head before driving away.

Just before 5:30 p.m., police learned that Engelstad’s truck was parked at a liquor store on Helmo Avenue North in Oakdale. When they arrived, they found Engelstad and the woman in the truck, along with a bottle of vodka that was three-quarters empty.

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The woman in the truck told police that Engelstad had punched her in the face outside Sgt. Peppers before driving to the liquor store, where he bought a bottle of vodka. When he returned to the truck, he began drinking the alcohol, then grabbed the victim by her neck and squeezed, repeating, “Tell me where it is” and “I just want to punch you in the face,” according to the complaint.

Police arrested Engelstad and put him in the back of a squad car, where he became “extremely belligerent” and began to kick the door, the complaint says. He was given a breath test at the jail, and police determined that his blood-alcohol content was .404.

Engelstad remains in custody on a $50,000 bond. He is scheduled to make an initial appearance on the charge Nov. 27 in Washington County District Court.


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