Man sentenced to 8 years for assaulting girlfriend, crashing SUV into family’s Buckeye apartment

PHOENIX — An abusive boyfriend has been sentenced to eight years in prison after kidnapping his girlfriend in her SUV and crashing into a family’s Buckeye apartment, authorities said.

Keith Auzenne, 38, got into an argument with his girlfriend while she was driving an SUV on Sept. 2, 2024, according to the city of Buckeye.

His girlfriend stopped the SUV and tried to get out, but he kept her from leaving, according to the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office.

MCAO said he forced her into the back seat of the SUV, got into the driver’s seat and started speeding, reaching up to 104 miles per hour. He held his girlfriend down so she couldn’t escape.

At one point, he hit a curb and sent the SUV flying for 54 feet, at which point it flew through a block wall, MCAO said.

After crashing through the wall, the SUV continued traveling through the air another 59 feet before it crashed into an apartment porch near Baseline and Miller roads, MCAO said.

Six people, including four children, were inside the apartment during the crash, which destroyed a wall, damaged support beams and shattered a glass door, MCAO said. One of the children suffered foot cuts from shards of glass on the ground.

“This defendant’s actions, rooted in domestic abuse, put innocent lives at risk,” Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell said in a Thursday announcement.

“It’s fortunate that no one was seriously hurt.”

Charges for abusive boyfriend sentenced to eight years in prison

After colliding into the apartment, Auzenne fled the scene, abandoning his injured girlfriend in the SUV, MCAO said.

Police found him a short time later, and he later told investigators he smoked methamphetamine earlier in the day — and that he considered crashing into a diesel truck but changed his mind.

“Driving a vehicle with total disregard for everyone in his path was not an accident,” Mitchell said. “It was a choice.”

Auzenne pleaded guilty to kidnapping, aggravated assault and unlawful use of means of transportation. He will be on probation for four years after he serves his prison sentence.

“Anyone in Maricopa County who endangers others so carelessly will face serious consequences,” Mitchell said.

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