QUINCY — A Quincy man allegedly head-butted and punched his girlfriend in the face during a recent incident in Quincy.

Grant County prosecutors charged Juan Velasquez Hernandez, 21, of Quincy, with unlawful imprisonment and third-degree assault.

Velasquez Hernandez's charges date back to Dec. 25, when a 19-year-old woman was brought to the Quincy Police Department by her sister to report a domestic violence incident that had reportedly occurred earlier in the day. When the woman was contacted by police her nose was reportedly swollen with bruising and one of her eyes were “severely” swollen, according to police records.

She stated about five hours earlier she was with her boyfriend, Velasquez Hernandez, at his home in the 100 block of E Street Northeast. She claimed they got into a verbal argument in his bedroom and Velasquez Hernandez head-butted her on the nose as the argument progressed.

She said after the head-butt she became silent and did not speak, but Velasquez Hernandez started to get even more angry and struck her just above her left eye with a closed face. After the punch, the victim said she attempted to leave Velasquez Hernandez's bedroom, but he allegedly grabbed her so she could not leave. He allegedly made the victim stay inside the house for about five minutes before letting her go.

Quincy police had a medical unit transport the victim to Quincy Valley Medical Center for evaluation of her injuries. She reportedly received an X-ray of her face, which came back as negative for any bone breaks or fractures. Her injuries were classified as not too severe. She was given pain medication and released from the hospital. After the victim was released from the hospital, police contacted Velasquez Hernandez at his E Street residence and spoke with him about the assault.

“I asked if he could tell me if anything happened on this day. Velasquez Hernandez seemed to understand what I was talking about and began to say he and his girlfriend started having an argument,” wrote the officer. “Velasquez Hernandez would later confirm both the head-butt as well as punching (the victim) in the face. Velasquez Hernandez also stated he did stand in the doorway and prevented her from leaving the residence.”

Velasquez Hernandez claimed during the altercation his girlfriend slapped him in the face, but he admitted that during the incident he “acted as the primary aggressor,” according to police records.

Richard Byrd can be reached via email at city@columbiabasinherald.com.