A 57-year-old man has been arrested on charges of assaulting and strangling a woman who was found dead in a Corvallis hotel room Tuesday, but police said they’re unsure of what occurred between the two before the woman’s death.
Corvallis police officers found Gina Vargas, 41, unresponsive in a Corvallis hotel room about 5:30 a.m. They tried to administer medical aid but couldn’t revive her.
Police have not charged anyone with homicide but have arrested George Spencer on second- and fourth-degree assault and strangulation charges. They said charges may be changed as the investigation continues.
Police learned Spencer and Vargas had met the previous day. Authorities have not clarified how the two met or whether they had ever encountered each before Monday. They did not immediately specify where either person was from.
In an interview after his arrest, Spencer told police he had used methamphetamine and became paranoid over Vargas’ “distant” behavior, police said. He told officers he was being “set up” and attacked Vargas, choking her until she was unconscious, police said.
About 4 a.m., Spencer ran downtown to a restaurant and reported to a staff member that he had been assaulted, police said. When he came back to his room, he encountered another man, and Spencer became worried that person had stolen some of his property, so he called police again, police said. Police did not specify what the other man was doing in Spencer’s hotel room, but said they contacted him and released him without charges.
Officers responded to the room at 5:23 a.m., where they found Vargas unresponsive on the bed.
Police said Spencer did not provide details to support the claim he was assaulted, and he provided a fake number for the hotel. When police saw Spencer, the only evident injury he had was a small scratch on his cheek, they said.
This story will be updated.
—Jayati Ramakrishnan; 503-221-4320; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com; @JRamakrishnanOR
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