Mugshot of Ivanka Pickering By. THE VIRGIN ISLANDS POLICE DEPARTMENT
ST. THOMAS — A woman who said she was trying to retrieve her phone from a lover’s vehicle was arrested after entering his residence without permission, assaulting him, and smashing the windshield of his van.
Ivanka Pickering appeared at the Leander Jurgen Command police station one afternoon in early August to tell police that she had been assaulted by a lover. She told them that she had been working as a nightclub DJ, and realized after her set that she did not have her cell phone. Remembering that she had left it in a man’s vehicle, she told police that she went to his residence to retrieve the device.
When she arrived, the woman said that the man was upset, because a female companion was in the house. Ms. Pickering reportedly told the man that she did not care about the other woman – she just wanted her phone. At that, the man reportedly shouted to her that she was never in his car, but Ms. Pickering admitted that she nevertheless forced her way inside the house because she was not about to leave without her phone.
She told police that once inside, a physical altercation ensued, with the man allegedly choking her, dragging her, and throwing her to the ground. She said that once the altercation was over, she found the phone on top of the dashboard of the man’s vehicle. She also admitted to damaging the window of one of his vehicles.
The next day, the man came to tell the police his side of the story. He recounted how Ms. Pickering allegedly knocked on his door approximately 3:00 a.m., forcing her way inside once he had opened it. He said that during the physical altercation that ensued, Ms. Pickering bit him in the stomach. She reportedly attempted to enter his bedroom, but he said that he prevented that by physically throwing her out of the house. She found her way back into the kitchen and began tossing his household items around, the man said. After she eventually left the house, Ms. Pickering reportedly damaged the rear windshield of one of his vehicles, and he told police that he believed she was the one who damaged the front windshield of another one of his vehicles.
The man told police that he and Ms. Pickering had previously been in an intimate relationship, however in a subsequent interview with police, Ms. Pickering claimed that the sexual activity between the two was still ongoing. In fact, that was what had occurred before she forgot her phone in the man’s vehicle that night, she told police.
Upon reviewing surveillance footage, police observed the sequence of events that unfolded. They watched as Ms. Pickering and the man spoke outside his residence, and saw him reach to close the door before she moved past him to enter the residence. They watched as the cameras captured the man pulling Ms. Pickering by the arm, out of the house. Police saw her then use both hands to push the man back inside, after which she falls to the ground outside the front door, presumably shoved by the man. Ms. Pickering re-enters the house, after which she is once again physically tossed outside. She makes another attempt to rush inside, but the camera ultimately captured the man carrying Ms. Pickering out of the residence and beyond the camera’s view.
Some hours later, surveillance cameras pick up Ms. Pickering reversing into the man’s driveway, and throwing a rock at his vehicle’s rear glass.
Police arrested Ms. Pickering on Friday, charging her with simple assault and battery, three counts of destruction of property, and forcible and unlawful entry, all as crimes of domestic violence. She was remanded into custody to await her advice of rights hearing.
In court on Monday, Magistrate Paula Norkaitis found probable cause to uphold all charges against Ms. Pickering, and set bail at $1000. She will have to report to the probation office once a week by telephone, and is prohibited from using alcohol or any controlled substance while the case is pending. She is also banned from possessing firearms, ammunition, or any dangerous weapon. She is ordered to remain at last 25 feet from the man at all times.
The next court appearance for Ms. Pickering has been scheduled for September 27.
