ST. THOMAS — Three women are now facing charges after a violent assault on the ex-girlfriend of the person alleged to be the main instigator of the attack. 

According to court records, last Friday police were dispatched to an apartment in Kirwan Terrace following reports of an altercation in progress. Responding officers found a woman injured and crying. Her eyes were swollen, and officers could see multiple scratches and bruises about her body. She said that she was assaulted by her ex-girlfriend Ceyanna Clement and her sister I'Yanna. 

The altercation stemmed from an argument the previous day, October 24. It took place over a social media platform, and involved personal matters between the woman and Ms. Clement. I'Yanna Clement, the woman said, later publicized certain information online. 

The woman told police that on Friday, she got a call from a friend warning her that the Clement sisters were on their way to her house to confront her. They were bringing several other individuals as well, the woman was told. The group wanted the woman's phone. If she refused to surrender it, she was informed, they had promised to “handle” the situation. 

In fear for her safety, the woman said she began making preparations to leave, but the group descended upon her before she could get away, forcibly entering the house through a front door damaged from a previous incident. The woman's attempts to barricade the door with a chair and wooden stick were easily overcome by the group reportedly led by Ceyenna and I'Yanna Clement, she told police. Once inside, the group demanded the woman's phone, but she refused and ordered them out of the house. 

The woman recounted being pinned to the bed by her ex-girlfriend Ceyenna, who instructed her sister to take the phone. The woman's phone and iPad were snatched, and she followed the group to the porch pleading for her belongings. The physical assault began then, with one person – Sania Felix – first recording the incident and then reportedly participating in the violence. The woman said that she was punched and kicked by the three women, Ceyenna, I'Yanna and Sania, while the two men present – identified only as Jerome and Joseph – acted as “lookouts and enforcers,” according to the police report. 

The woman's aunt eventually intervened and pulled her to safety, while the group reportedly fled, mocking their victim as they went by encouraging her to call the police. 

After learning that the Clement sisters had reportedly returned to the scene of the crime to again threaten the woman, police went to their apartment in the same housing complex. Ceyanna admitted to having the woman's iPad and handed it over, but denied having the phone. She was arrested and charged with first-degree burglary, second-degree robbery, grand larceny, simple assault, possession of stolen property, and disturbance of the peace. I'Yanna was also arrested and charged with the same offenses. 

Sania Felix was arrested at a different apartment in Kirwan Terrace, and despite her claims that she did not step inside the home or participate in the attack, she was also charged with the same offenses as Ceyanna and I'Yanna Clement. 

The women appeared before Magistrate Simone VanHolten-Turnbull on Monday. Probable cause was found to uphold all charges against them. Bail was set at $25,000 each (Ceyenna), with a requirement that $1000 in cash be posted for each suspect to secure her release ahead of trial, with the remainder posted as an unsecured bond. 

They are all required to report to the probation office each week in person, and are prohibited from using alcohol or any controlled substance while the matter is pending. 

The next scheduled court appearance for Ceyenna Clement, I'Yanna Clement and Sania Felix is scheduled for November 11.