Nik Rajkovic / news@whmi.com

The Ingham County Sheriff's Office reports a Battle Creek man faces charges after deputies witnessed him assaulting a female while both sat in the back seat of a patrol car.

It happened around 1 am Sunday in the area of Proctor and Carter in White Oak Township. Deputies were dispatched for a single car rollover crash. All three occupants were uninjured, but due to the cold weather, they were given shelter in the back of a warm patrol car.

According to a release, 31--year-old Thomas Bergstresser was let outside to look for his cell phone. He returned upset because it could not be found, then pounded his fists on the rear seat partition which "caught the sergeant’s immediate attention."

As the sergeant opened the rear door to his patrol vehicle he observed Bergstresser assault a female also sitting in the back seat.

Bergstresser was quickly removed from the patrol car and arrested for domestic assault.

The sergeant then reviewed his in-car video of the back seat which showed a separate assault of the female victim that occurred earlier again in the back seat while the sergeant was outside the patrol car. Bergstresser was lodged at the Ingham County Jail.

The Ingham County Prosecutor’s Office authorized one count of misdemeanor domestic assault. He was arraigned on Monday in 55th District Court and given a personal recognizance bond.