WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — A Wausau man is facing eight felony charges relating to a December car crash.
Manuel Hoffman, 25, is charged with 11 counts including attempted first-degree intentional homicide, strangulation, and causing substantial bodily harm. Investigators say that on December 14th Hoffman forced a woman he knew into a car he stole by packing her stuff into a bag and pushing her into the car.
Hoffman is accused of crashing the car near the intersection of State Road 29 and County Road F. The two got out of the car after the crash. Hoffman initially fled the crash, but came back and strangled the woman outside the car. That was when a passerby noticed the crash and asked if the two needed help.
Hoffman ran to the woman’s car and got into the backseat before she could lock the door. The passerby got out of her car and ran to another vehicle to call 911. Hoffman is then accused of taking the passerby’s car and driving off. He then crashed that vehicle near County Highway F.
When police arrived, at the scene they said Hoffman resisted. One officer used force to restrain Hoffman. The officer later reported a bone in his hand had broken.
Hoffman is being held on a $1 million bond at the Marathon County Jail and will return to court on February 12th for a preliminary hearing.
