Seattle police called to Mateo residence a week before arrest in New York

Police were called to the Seattle residence of Mariners pitcher Julio Mateo a week before he was charged with assaulting his wife.

Two 911 calls were placed from Mateo’s residence on the morning of April 28. Both calls were disconnected, and when police arrived, Mateo was not there.

Police found Mateo’s sister at the residence, the Dexter Lake Union apartments, at 1215 Dexter Avenue N. She led two Seattle Police officers to the apartment, where Mateo’s wife, Aurea, was waiting, according to the incident report.

Neither Mateo’s wife, nor sister spoke English. According to the report, Aurea Mateo signaled to one of the officers she had been choked, putting her hand on her neck and sticking out her tongue.

Police contacted a Spanish-speaking officer who spoke to Aurea Mateo and Mateo’s sister by phone. Both said they were not hurt, and did not need medical assistance. Police found no evidence of injury to Aurea Mateo, according to the report.

Aurea Mateo showed police a broken house phone, and broken cell phone.

Last Saturday, Mateo was charged with third-degree assault after his wife was treated in a New York hospital for facial injuries. The alleged assault took place around 2:30 a.m. Saturday at the Mariners’ hotel in midtown Manhattan.

Mateo had turned himself in to New York police shortly after the Mariners’ loss to the Yankees that day. Mateo was not at Yankee Stadium for the game.

Mateo, 29, spent Saturday night in custody, then was formally arraigned in court on a third-degree assault charge Sunday afternoon in Manhattan Criminal Court. He was released on $3,000 bail and will have to reappear in court on June 15.

Edison Alban, a spokesman for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office, said that Mateo’s wife received a black eye, five stitches on her lip from being bitten and was also choked by her attacker.

The maximum penalty for assault in the third degree, a Class A misdemeanor, is up to a year in jail. But some defendants don’t serve any jail time, depending on their prior record and other factors.

Mateo and his wife have an infant son, Julio Jr. It isn’t known whether he was present at the time of the assault. The New York Times reported that an infant was in the room during the assault and that two other children, ages 7 and 11, were in an adjoining room.

The Mariners optioned Mateo to Class AAA Tacoma, then suspended him for 10 games without pay, for missing the game without permission.

In a written statement from the Mariners on Monday night, Mateo said he is “personally embarrassed by the incident on Saturday morning, which resulted in my arrest and absence from my team.”

"Without getting into detail,” he later added, “I understand that my behavior was inappropriate. I am very sorry for this, and I want to apologize to all of them.

"I cannot comment on what has been reported, since there is a criminal case pending. But I have pledged to the Mariners to begin personal counseling immediately to help address any issues that I may have. Beyond stating again my deepest regrets, I cannot comment further.”

The Mariners issued statements of their own, with team president Chuck Armstrong saying: “The Seattle Mariners as an organization deplores domestic violence. There is simply no excuse for it. Over the years, we have endeavored to be in the forefront of efforts to confront and eradicate domestic violence.”

Mariners general manager Bill Bavasi met with Mateo and team counselor Rafael Colon on Monday morning.

"I discussed with him how seriously the club takes these charges and how low our tolerance is relative to this alleged behavior,” Bavasi said. “Julio is contrite and acknowledges he has personal issues for which he needs professional help, which he has requested.

"Along with the punishment we are levying against Julio, we feel it is our responsibility to respond to his request for help, provide that help and aid in returning an improved person to our community.”

The 6-foot, 222-pound Mateo, a native of the Dominican Republic, is 1-0 with a 3.75 ERA in nine relief outings this season. He won nine games as a reliever last season before breaking his hand in August when a steel weight from a barbell dropped on it while he was working out.