Sarah Hyland’s Ex Matt Prokop Arrested for Allegedly Assaulting Girlfriend

Sarah Hyland’s ex-boyfriend Matt Prokop has been arrested after he allegedly assaulted his current girlfriend. Police in Prokop’s hometown of Victoria, Texas arrested the High School Musical 3 star on Saturday, May 18 following the alleged incident, with Prokop, 33, now facing charges of aggravated assault family and resisting arrest.

According to Victoria Police Department Sergeant Dailey, who spoke to TMZ, officers responded to a call on Saturday after Prokop’s girlfriend reportedly told another person that he had assaulted her. Although the two were gone by the time officers responded to the scene, police later responded to a reported domestic disturbance involving the pair at a different location, where they found Prokop and his girlfriend.

Dailey said officers were told that Prokop allegedly pushed his girlfriend and slammed her head into something. Officers noted that the woman, who was not named, suffered enough injuries to warrant an arrest. The former child actor “tried to pull away” from officers and “run” during the arrest. He was charged with aggravated assault family and resisting arrest.

The Saturday incident was not the first time Prokop has faced allegations of abuse. Hyland, who he co-starred with in 2011’s Geek Charming, filed a restraining order against him following their split in 2014. In the filing, the actress claimed that Prokop both verbally and physically assaulted her throughout their five-year relationship and once pinned her against a car during an argument and choked her, recounting how “his grip was so tight that I could not breathe or speak. I was scared and in fear for my life.

She said that amid the abuse, she went to Julie Bowen, who portrayed her mom on Modern Family, for help, asking Bowen to come to her house to help “peacefully end the relationship.”

She claimed that during the breakup, Bowen stepped in and told her to leave the house because she “wasn’t safe around Prokop.” Hyland also claimed that Prokop threatened to set one of her homes on fire, threatened that she would never see her dog again, and “relentlessly bombarded me with vile, threatening and emotionally disturbing texts and voice mails including his own suicide threats.” A judge ultimately granted Hyland the restraining order, which ordered Prokop to stay away from the actress for three years.

Prokop rose to fame as a child actor with appearances in shows like The Office, Hannah Montana, and Good Luck Charlie. He is perhaps best known for his role as Jimmie Zara in High School Musical 3. His most recent appearance was in 2013’s April Apocalypse, according to his IMDb profile.

If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, you can reach the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233. You can also chat with a representative at thehotline.org or by texting “START” to 88788.