New Year’s Eve attack and kidnapping ends in daring escape southwest of Richland

A 33-year-old woman made a narrow escape New Year’s Eve after her ex-boyfriend beat her and forced her to drive into rural Benton County.

Benton County sheriff’s deputies say Rudolfo Lopez Alfaro, 31, met the woman at the Conoco station on Ninth Street in Benton City at 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday night.

He got in the passenger seat and as she started driving, Alfaro hit her in the face, said the sheriff’s office on Facebook.

They drove south and turned onto Webber Canyon Road when she had to stop because of the blood in her eyes, said deputies. But when Alfaro ordered her into the backseat at gunpoint, she managed to jump out and start running.

Alfaro dropped the gun on the floorboard and wasn’t able to catch her before she reached a house on Southwest Anderson Road, southwest of Richland in the Horse Heaven Hills, said deputies.

He drove off, while she found help and was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center with several broken teeth, a broken hand and cuts.

Deputies later tracked Alfaro to a home in the 300 block of Seventh Street in Benton City. They were watching the house when they spotted him driving shortly after 10 a.m. New Year’s Day. They stopped the car at Second Street but Alfaro ran.

Deputy Dave Frederick and his police dog, Sable, caught up with him and he was arrested.

Alfaro was booked into the Benton County jail on suspicion of first-degree assault and first-degree kidnapping.