An Eagle man is looking at possibly spending the next half century behind bars for an attack on a local bartender early Monday morning.
34-year-old Pedro Gonzalez was arrested just hours after he allegedly attempted to kill the female bartender at the Brush Creek Saloon just after 1 o’clock yesterday morning. Investigators say that video from the bar’s security system shows Gonzalez, who was the only patron in the bar at the time, follow the woman into the kitchen behind the bar and began beating her in the head with a beer bottle, then later dropped it and continued hitting her with his fists. He then dragged her by her hair toward a pool table and switched to uppercut punches.
The bartender was finally able to get away and flee to a neighboring apartment to call police. Officers found Gonzalez at a room he was renting nearby and he was arrested without incident. The woman was rushed to Vail Valley Medical Center for treatment. Eagle Police say that if she had not escaped the assault, she would have been killed.
Gonzalez appeared in District Court yesterday afternoon and was ordered held on a $500,000 bond. He was charged with critical attempt of first-degree murder, which carries up to a 48-year prison term, and first-degree assault, punishable by 24 years in prison. He’s due back in court on August 29th.