Gerard Auguiste. Photo Credit: THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
ST. THOMAS — A man whose ex-girlfriend accused him of breaking into an AirBnB and raping her is now facing multiple felony charges before the V.I. Superior Court.
In the pre-dawn hours of Monday, August 7, police were summoned to the Schneider Regional Medical Center. According to court documents, the responding officer met a colleague who had himself been called to Anna’s Retreat in response to a report of a man dressed only in a shirt outside yelling for help. The officer, who went to Anna’s Retreat, said he was directed to a man hiding in the bush who told him that he and a woman were asleep in his AirBnB, when an armed man broke into the residence and ordered him out at gunpoint. Police were informed that he then forced the woman inside to have sex with him, and then fled on foot, leaving his vehicle behind.
The woman, who was transported to the hospital by her mother, met with police and told them that she and the almost-nude man had been out that night, ending up at the AirBnB. They were in bed sleeping when she was awakened by a man dressed all in black, pointing a gun at the two of them. She says she recognized her ex-boyfriend Gerard Auguiste when he called her by a nickname. Auguiste reportedly began shouting at her for being in the unit with another man, and told her male friend that he could leave, as Auguiste’s “beef” was with his ex.
According to court documents, once Auguiste was alone with the woman, he allegedly questioned her about her relationship with another man. Becoming increasingly agitated due to the presence of the man's vehicle outside and noticing certain items in the room, Auguiste allegedly became aggressive towards the woman. The woman said she complied out of fear for her safety. The documents further allege that Auguiste physically restrained the woman and sexually assaulted her, despite her protests.
The woman told police that when Auguiste was finished, she retreated to a corner and he resumed pacing, nervous that her male friend was waiting for him outside, since his vehicle was still there. Eventually, she says her ex forced her outside to find out why the vehicle was still there, and she realized that there were police in the area. She made a beeline towards them while Auguiste reportedly begged her to come back inside.
Police spoke to the man who made the call to 911. He told them that his son came into his bedroom around 2:00 a.m. saying that there was a man outside screaming. The neighbor told them man to leave, but he refused, saying he needed help. He heard the man say that his friend was stuck inside of a house with her ex-boyfriend who was armed. After police arrived and spoke to the man, they saw the woman approaching from a nearby house.
Investigating officers made contact with Auguiste later that day, and he was brought to the Domestic Violence Unit. He confessed to tracking his ex to the AirBnB after going to her home at midnight and discovering that she was out. Because it was her birthday, Auguiste says he deduced she may have gone to the same AirBnB the two of them went to last August, before the woman completely severed their on-again, off-again relationship of about 7 years in January 2023, blocking him across all social media platforms.
At the AirBnB, Auguiste told police that he saw his ex-girlfriend’s car and went to the back porch that leads to the master bedroom. He entered the property through the partially opened door on that porch, his black Glock 23 in hand because, as he is reported to have told officers, “I didn’t know what kind of time partner was on.”
He denied any non-consensual acts with the woman, asserting that everything was consensual. He mentioned an interaction involving holding her leg but refrained from detailing further. Noticing the continued presence of the man's car and spotting police cars nearby, he explained his need to depart the scene. With his phone inaccessible in his vehicle, he relayed to officers that he discarded his gun in a bush and sought transportation from a passerby. He expressed willingness to guide the police to the location where he claimed to have left the firearm.
Investigators later retrieved the loaded weapon from the bushes in the back of the house. Augiste admitted to not having a firearms license, and a check with the Firearms Bureau confirmed this to be true. He was subsequently arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree rape, first-degree burglary, first-degree assault, third-degree assault, and unlawful sexual contact — all as crimes of domestic violence. He was also charged with unlawful possession of a firearm during a crime of violence, unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, home invasion, brandishing and exhibiting a firearm, and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number.
In court on Wednesday, Magistrate Simone VanHolten found probable cause to uphold all the charges against Gerard Auguiste. Bail was set at $100,000, but Auguiste will be allowed to post a cash component of $5,000 to be released ahead of trial. If released, Auguiste will be required to spend 24 hours each day on house arrest with electronic monitoring, only allowed to leave for court appearances, meeting with his attorney, or for emergency medical treatment. He is also required to contact the probation office twice every week by telephone, and must stay a minimum of 100 feet from the alleged victims.
The next court appearance for Auguiste is scheduled for August 25. He had previously been arrested on firearms charges in December 2022, but the state declined to prosecute and the charges were dropped.
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