By The Star Staff
Justice Secretary Domingo Emanuelli Hernández announced Wednesday that the Arecibo Prosecutor’s Office has filed 10 charges against Kaleb Villafañe Rosario, who is accused of having kidnapped, assaulted and threatened to kill his partner in Morovis on Monday.
Prosecutors Loures López Lugo and Juan Ayala Rivera, of the Specialized Unit for Domestic Violence, charged Villafañe Rosario on Tuesday night with six counts of aggravated abuse and threats, under Law 54-1989. In addition, they filed one count of aggravated escalation, two counts of endangering safety by discharging a weapon in a public place, and one count of discharging or pointing a firearm.
The filing of charges of kidnapping and use of an illegal automatic weapon in a federal jurisdiction was being coordinated with federal authorities, according to reports.
According to the investigation, the suspect hit the victim in the face and various parts of her body on multiple occasions, causing bruises. In addition, he intimidated her and forced her into a vehicle, while holding a firearm which he pointed at her head, the report said. The man allegedly fired two shots into the air and threatened to kill the victim.
Subsequently, Villafañe Rosario was arrested at the victim’s residence. The man was found by police officers lying on a bed holding a firearm and an article of the woman’s clothing. The investigation was led by agent Noel Berríos Rodríguez, assigned to the Criminal Investigations Corps of Arecibo.
Judge Juan Portell Maldonado determined probable cause for arrest and imposed a bail of $500,000, which the defendant did not provide, so he was admitted to a penal institution.