WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Ill. – A sheriff in southern Illinois is calling it “one of the most severe and prolonged cases of domestic violence” he’s seen in his law enforcement career.

Earlier this week, Williamson County Sheriff Jeff Diederich said his deputies rescued a woman they said was being held against her will and beaten.

Diederich claims his deputies were serving an arrest warrant on Feb. 27 at the home of Tristan Sine for a previous domestic battery incident. While at Sine’s Carterville residence, deputies found a woman there whose left eye had been bruised and swelled shut. She’d also suffered a cut to her forehead, had several bruises on her arms, and her nose had been broken.

Deputies took Sine into custody, Diederich said. The victim was reunited with her family and transported the victim to a local hospital.

The Williamson County State’s Attorney’s Office charged Sine with aggravated domestic battery and unlawful restraint. He remains in custody at Williamson County Jail.

Sheriff Diederich said the investigation is ongoing and additional charges against Sine are still pending.