SAN JUAN — Police arrested a state trooper for allegedly hitting his wife early Sunday morning.

Aristeo Nereo Deleon Cantu, who has been with the Texas Department of Public Safety for 16 years, was charged with assault causing bodily injury.

Cantu and his wife were driving home from watching a boxing match at a family member’s home about 2:40 a.m., when they got in an argument and Cantu demanded his wife stop the car, according to a San Juan Police Department news release.

As she exited U.S. Expressway 83, he allegedly began to hit her in the stomach and face. The release states that Cantu’s wife sustained injuries from the incident, but police Chief Juan Gonzalez said they were not severe.

San Juan officers discovered Cantu was employed as a state trooper when they responded to the scene.

Cantu was taken to the Hidalgo County Jail and released on a $5,000 bond, according to jail booking records.

The Department of Public Safety has suspended Cantu with pay pending an internal investigation, Trooper Johnny Hernandez said.

Monitor staff writer Elizabeth Findell contributed to this report.