(David Lee Conner. Photo provided by the Chesterfield Sheriff’s Department)
A man that has been working as a security guard for state Senator Amanda Chase (R-Chesterfield) during her campaign for Governor was arrested Monday morning.
David Lee Conner was arrested in Chesterfield County and charged with strangulation early-Monday morning, according to a police spokesperson. He is employed by the security company that accompanies the senator to events across Virginia. Conner has been featured in several photos with Senator Chase since she launched her campaign for governor. Most recently, he can be seen standing with her on the cover of Style Weekly.
In a statement to Virginia Scope, a spokesperson for Chesterfield County Police said that officers responded shortly after 2 a.m. on Monday to a reported domestic assault at a residence in the 5000 block of Timberrun Court. The investigation indicated that an adult male, identified as David L. Conner, 28, assaulted an adult female that he knows. Conner was arrested and charged with strangulation of another.
The Chase campaign was unaware of Conner’s arrest when they were contacted by Virginia Scope on Monday morning. Phil Search, a spokesperson for the Chase campaign told Virginia Scope that Conner works for a security agency that they hired in the spring of this year. “He has been nothing but kind to the staff and he goes overboard to help,” said Search in an interview. “He has never shown any kind of aggression whatsoever or commented on anything aggressively. This is a surprise to the campaign, we do not endorse any kind of criminal behavior.”
Michael Brame, the owner of Arete Protection Services, the company tasked with providing protection services for Senator Chase, told Virginia Scope that Conner has been placed on administrative leave, pending the outcome of his legal issues. “We have had no disciplinary or administrative problems with him,” said Brame.
Conner is expected to go before a judge on Monday at 11:30 a.m. for a pre-trial hearing. He is currently being held without bail. We will provide an update when more information becomes available throughout the day.
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