Man whose throat was cut 'satisfactory'
TO HELP
Authorities invited anyone with information about the whereabouts of Martin J. Nelson to call 911 or the Walworth County Sheriff’s Office at (262) 741-4400.
Walworth County sheriff’s deputies continued searching late Thursday for a man suspected of cutting the throat of the man he lived with before fleeing on foot early in the morning.
Martin J. Nelson, 22, is suspected of slashing the throat of Michael L. Obinger, 60, at about 5 a.m. Thursday at the residence they shared at W6577 Kettle Moraine Drive in La Grange Township southeast of Whitewater, according to a news release.
Obinger suffered a “deep cut” that authorities considered potentially life-threatening. He was treated at Aurora Lakeland Medical Center in Elkhorn and transported with critical injuries to Froedert Memorial Lutheran Hospital in Wauwatosa. He was in satisfactory condition Thursday afternoon.
Nelson fled on foot, and Obinger called the sheriff’s office, said Undersheriff Kurt Picknell.
A ground and air search that included dogs and a police helicopter started right away. An automated phoning system was used to call area residents and notify them about the incident and the search, Picknell said.
Authorities searched farm fields with dogs and a helicopter but found nothing, Picknell said. By Thursday afternoon, authorities were expanding the search to include parts of Rock and Jefferson counties, he said.
“We’re following up on leads to try and locate him,” Picknell said.
The details of the incident—including whether a verbal or physical dispute preceded the throat slashing, what might have prompted the tussle and what Nelson is suspected of using to cut Obinger—are under investigation, Picknell said.
Authorities are unsure of the relationship between the men, Picknell said. The pair lived together, he said.
Online court records indicate Nelson moved in with Obinger in late June; he changed his address from a residence in Whitewater to the residence in La Grange Township.
Court records also show that Obinger co-signed a cash bond for Nelson in mid-June, when Nelson was charged with second-degree recklessly endangering safety, aggravated battery and disorderly conduct. In that incident, Nelson is accused of trying to stab his then-boyfriend, Scott A. Hayes Jr., with a 15-inch dagger at their residence, according to the criminal complaint. He fled the scene but later was stopped by police. He also was charged with second-offense drunken driving and operating after revocation.
Picknell on Thursday warned residents that Nelson is considered armed and dangerous.
Nelson is described as 6 feet 2 inches and 165 pounds with short blonde hair and blue eyes.
