Man Accused Of Detaining And Beating Woman In Her Own Apartment Out On Bail

ST. THOMAS — V.I. Superior Court Magistrate Henry Carr III found probable cause to move forward on false imprisonment and related charges against Elijah Henry, above, who is accused of beating a female victim while detaining her in her apartment, V.I. Department of Justice Public Media Officer announced this week.

Mr. Henry, 25, of Oswald Harris Court housing community is charged with one count each of false imprisonment; disturbance of the peace (domestic violence); third-degree assault (domestic violence); assault and battery (domestic violence) and second-degree assault in connection with an incident that occurred in the predawn hours of Tuesday.

Hours after his arrest, Mr. Henry appeared before Magistrate Carr Tuesday morning for an advice-of-rights hearing, during which Magistrate Carr found probable cause to sustain the charges and set a $25,000 bail for Mr. Henry, allowing him to post $1,000 in cash and execute an unsecured appearance bond for the remaining $24,000. The suspect was also ordered to adhere to a number of court-imposed bail conditions, which include having no contact with the victim and reporting telephonically to the Office of Probation twice weekly.

Mr. Henry is accused of beating a woman while detaining her at her apartment.

According to a probable cause fact sheet prepared by Officer Yaniris Madera, officers responded to a report of the assault. The victim’s mother told police that she telephoned her daughter several times, but after getting no response from her, she went to her daughter’s apartment.

When the mother arrived at the daughter’s apartment, she began pounding on the door. No one answered her knock, but she heard someone from inside the apartment calling for help. The mother called 911, according to Madera.

Police arrived on the scene and the victim told police that Mr.  Henry beat and choked her, and kept her from leaving the apartment. The victim said while inside the apartment, she heard pounding on the door but could not move. She said when Mr. Henry fell asleep, she was able to get up and open the door and was rescued by her mother and police officers. The victim was taken to Schneider Hospital to be treated for contusions to the face and head, according to Madera’s probable cause fact sheet.

Mr. Henry’s arraignment hearing, at which he will formally answer to the charges, is slated for March 9.