ST. THOMAS: Two men held in separate domestic violence cases

Police on St. Thomas arrested two men on Saturday in connection with separate domestic violence matters, authorities said.

In the afternoon, officers responded to The Westin Beach Resort & Spa at Frenchman's Reef around 4:51 p.m. after reports of an active assault on the property. There they found John Hall, 33, who was taken into custody. According to police, Hall had assaulted a woman by pressing his arm across her neck during a dispute, restricting her ability to breathe. He was charged with second-degree assault domestic violence and third-degree assault domestic violence.

Hall was transported to the Richard N. Callwood Command in Charlotte Amalie, where he declined to participate in booking procedures. Under Virgin Islands domestic violence law, he was held without bail at the Bureau of Corrections pending an advice-of-rights hearing in Superior Court.

Earlier that morning, a separate investigation began after police received a call around 11:30 a.m. Officers who arrived at the scene spoke with a woman who reported being sexually assaulted by Slybertrand Villaestiva, 39. Villaestiva was located later that day and taken into custody. At the Richard N. Callwood Command, detectives informed him of his constitutional rights. Police said Villaestiva waived those rights during intake. He was charged with first-degree rape domestic violence and remanded to the Bureau of Corrections without bail pending an advice-of-rights hearing.

Both victims' identities were protected in accordance with privacy protocols for domestic abuse survivors. Before his arrest, Villaestiva was recognised in the local running community as a distance competitor who regularly took part in Virgin Islands road races, including the 8 Tuff Miles race held annually on St. John.