Man accused of strangling his girlfriend in a cornfield near Georgetown

Georgetown, MN (WDAY TV) -- Law enforcement officials from both Minnesota and North Dakota are looking for a man they believe assaulted and strangled his girlfriend just north of Georgetown.

The Clay County Sheriff's department says a woman walked out of a cornfield bloody, shirtless and with no shoes shortly after 1 AM on Friday morning. Now, an arrest warrant has issued for her long-time boyfriend Peter Ihnken, of Argusville, North Dakota.

According to the arrest warrant, a woman started hearing strange noises from a cornfield just north of her home. She thought she could hear a female yelling in pain. When officers arrived on scene, they found an abandoned vehicle registered to the 33 year-old Ihnken.

Deputies used the squad speaker to call out to the cornfield and a short time later the female victim came out. Deputies observed her face to be bloody, her upper lip swollen and bruises on her arm and her throat.

Bill Bergquist - Clay County Sheriff: "We have found over the years that if it happens once, it will happen again. Rehabilitation is just a tough thing when we're dealing with this kind of an assault."

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