A 19-year-old man, Keanu Labatte, has been arrested and charged with multiple felonies after allegedly holding his girlfriend captive, subjecting her to rape, beatings, and waterboarding at St. Catherine University in St. Paul, Minnesota. Labatte was apprehended on Sunday at the all-female university.
Labatte is facing five felony counts, including three for criminal sexual conduct, one for domestic assault by strangulation, and one for threats of violence. The public defender’s office representing Labatte declined to comment on the case.
According to a criminal complaint filed this week, Labatte arrived on campus last Thursday to visit his girlfriend. After discovering texts, pictures, and social media content that angered him, Labatte confiscated her phone and kept her isolated for several days. The complaint alleges that during this time, Labatte strangled her, threatened her with a knife, waterboarded her, and sexually assaulted her in her dorm room.
On Sunday morning, the victim managed to convince Labatte to let her leave to get food from the cafeteria. She then sought help from the university’s security office, reporting the abuse. The security office promptly notified the police, who observed visible marks on the victim’s neck. Labatte was subsequently found in the dorm room and arrested on probable cause of domestic assault and sexual assault.
As of Wednesday afternoon, Labatte remains in custody.
Author: Ryan Scott
Just a guy