A St. Thomas resident, accused in connection with a sexual assault first reported in May, made an initial appearance in Superior Court Tuesday. Documents filed at the time of his arrest described an encounter between a motorist and a female pedestrian that began with an exchange of words.
Defendant Harold Bruney was charged with first-degree rape, assault and disturbance of the peace involving threats. Magistrate Judge Paula Norkadis declared police had probable cause to uphold the charges and ordered Bruney to appear for arraignment Nov. 7.
The charging document filed in court said the alleged victim appeared at Zone A Police Command on May 12 to file a report. In a recorded statement, the complainant said she was walking toward her home in the Contant area when a pickup truck stopped nearby.
The report went on to say a male emerged from the passenger side of the truck, walked up and began asking her questions. Moments later, she said, as she tried to walk away, that person began aggressively touching her. “she noticed that the unknown male was behind her, he started touching her back with his hand and then began to inappropriately touch her body without her consent,” the statement said.
After giving her statement, police said the complainant then gave them a photo of the person she accused of assaulting her.
The report included a second account of the incident given to police several days later by a woman who said she was a friend of the complainant and heard the encounter on the street from her home. The witness called the tone of that talk “unfriendly.”
Court documents said investigators were able to gather additional corroborating evidence, leading to Bruney’s arrest on Oct. 20.
