Mugshot of Miguel Jno Baptiste. Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
ST. THOMAS — After altercations with both his current and former girlfriends within the span of 10 days, 27-year-old Miguel Jno Baptiste is before the courts on assault charges.
First, VIPD officers responded to a residence in Pillsbury Heights on January 17th. There, they met with a woman who told them that Jno Baptiste, her boyfriend, had been in an auto collision earlier that day. She said he subsequently came to her residence and blamed her for the accident, however at the time of the collision she says she was neither texting him nor speaking to Jno Baptiste on the phone.
The woman asked her boyfriend to leave, but before he did so, she says he hit her in the back of her head. A few moments later Jno Baptiste was back, the woman claimed, and began arguing again. This time, he ignored her requests to leave, and when the woman approached him she says he punched her before grabbing her by the neck with both hands and beginning to squeeze.
According to documents before the court, at this point, the woman's landlady intervened and begged Jno Baptiste to stop. The landlady said she had seen the pair arguing, as they always did, before she got into her vehicle and began to drive away, but the argument quickly escalated. When she looked out the vehicle's window she saw Jno Baptiste’s hands around his girlfriend's neck, which is when the landlady said she intervened.
When Jno Baptiste released his girlfriend she ran to her apartment. Bruising was noted on the woman’s neck, but she declined medical treatment.
On January 27, Jno Baptiste’s ex-girlfriend made a report to police that he came to her workplace and caused a scene. Jno Baptiste had called central dispatch for assistance to get his belongings out of the ex-girlfriend’s home. When police met with Jno Baptiste, he told them that he came to his ex-girlfriend's workplace only because he needed his tools which were still in her possession. Police asked Jno Baptiste if he was familiar with the woman who made the report on January 17 and he confirmed that she was his current girlfriend. When questioned about that incident, he said that they had a minor disagreement and he had only pushed her. Jno Baptiste was placed under arrest and charged with second-degree assault and simple assault as acts of domestic violence. He was also charged with disturbance of the peace.
In court on Monday, a judge ruled that Jno Baptiste would only be released upon posting a fully secured bond of $5,000. He is barred from leaving the St. Thomas- St. John District without the court’s permission and must report to the Office of Probation once a week. He is prohibited from entering the ex-girlfriend’s residence and must have no contact, directly or indirectly with either of the victims. He must maintain a minimum distance of 50 ft away from both women.
