AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Austin Police Department has arrested a man who they believe killed his live-in girlfriend and later tried to escape a police interview room.

Edmundo Cisneroz, 25, is accused of strangling his 36-year-old girlfriend to death and running away, according to an arrest affidavit. The woman’s daughter found her body covered in blood Saturday morning at her home on Bear Paw Trail, near the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Neighbors say they witnessed the victim and Cisneroz arguing earlier that morning. 

According to the affidavit, Cisneroz was upset because he thought the victim was cheating on him. The two began their argument outside and ended up in the bedroom where the incident got physical. Police said Cisneroz choked the victim until she died. The affidavit also alleges that Cisneroz then stole the victim’s daughter’s car, a gray Chrysler, and fled the scene. 

The Lone Star Fugitive Task Force found the suspect in the Chrysler and arrested him.

While in the interrogation room, police say Cisneroz attempted to escape by climbing up to the ceiling when investigators stepped out. Police say he was unable to get far because the room is surrounded by cinder blocks. When police questioned him about trying to escape, he told them he needed to “get some air.” 

Police records show that Cisneroz had also been accused of raping and strangling the victim on Christmas day of 2017. 

Cisneroz has been booked into the Travis County Jail and charged with murder and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. He faces up to 99 years in prison if convicted. He is currently in jail on a bond totaling $225,000.