CODY, Wyo. -- A Wyoming man is in hot water for allegedly spraying his girlfriend and two others with bear repellant during a dispute.

Joseph Underwood, 20, faces numerous charges, including three counts of assault, in connection with the incident earlier this week near Cody, Wyo.

According to deputies, Underwood's girlfriend said he followed her vehicle and forced her to stop her car north of town. He then smashed a window and sprayed the bear repellant into the car.

The girlfriend, her son and mother were sprayed and needed treatment for the effects of the repellant. When sprayed in the face, the spray causes temporary blindness and restricted breathing, according to a bear repellent manufacturer.

Underwood took off into sagebrush country north of Cody, but rolled his vehicle in a steep gully. He fled on foot to the Shoshone River, deputies said.

They located him Wednesday and he surrendered.

Underwood is being held in the Park County Jail in Cody.