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Police: Disgruntled window washer punched elderly woman in the face

Posted at 12:44 PM, Apr 18, 2019
and last updated 2019-04-18 12:45:03-04

LINCOLN, Calif. - A Lincoln woman was punched in the face at her home by a man she paid to clean her windows this week, police said.

The Sun City Lincoln Hills community is quiet and quaint. Retirees make up a large number of the residents there.

"It wasn’t like anything ... you wouldn’t have expected anything. I have no clue what set him off," resident Gerry Esker said.

Esker said 38-year-old Erik Martinson went door-to-door through Esker's neighborhood, asking if he could wash their windows.

Lincoln Police said Martinson assaulted a woman in her 80s Monday.

"I was surprised because it certainly didn’t seem like the person that I encountered anyway," Esker told FOX40.

Martinson, according to police, was being paid to clean the woman's windows. When they got into an argument about a check that didn't clear, Martinson punched the woman in the face.

"The injuries did require some stitches and she was bruised up, had some cuts," Lincoln Police Lt. Matt Alves said. "She’s fine. She’s in a lot of pain still."

Lincoln police arrested Martinson Tuesday for felony battery and elder abuse.

Doug Porter said he saw the arrest happen.

"I saw a white van with five cop cars surrounding it. I wasn’t sure of what happened," he said.

Porter said though it is a low-crime area, many people living in the Lincoln community are vigilant because they’re vulnerable.

"Our age is a factor out here," Porter said. "We’re certainly not young people, and when something like that happens it can be pretty critical trying to recover."

It's a cautionary tale police say should be a learning lesson for all communities like Sun City Lincoln Hills.

"If you do have any service people at your home, don't be alone. Have somebody else with you," Alves warned.

Police told FOX40 last year Martinson, who’s based in Santa Rosa, got into another heated argument with a customer and ended up throwing a chair through their window.

His bail was set at $250,000 and he bailed out Wednesday. He did not answer his phone when FOX40 called.