A Minden man was arrested on domestic abuse and aggravated assault charges after officers located him hiding in his victim’s mother’s home.
At the time of the initial incident, Nicholas Bryant, 31, and his girlfriend, the victim, were living together in the 400 block of North Roosevelt Street in Minden. Bryant’s girlfriend was six months pregnant with his child, and they had been dating for a year and a half.
On November 30, the girlfriend confronted Bryant about text messages she had found on his phone from a prior girlfriend indicating he was considering rekindling their relationship.
“Nicholas was in the shower when confronted by [the victim],” she reported to police. “Nicholas became angry, exited the shower, and pushed [her] out of the bathroom and into a sheetrock wall across from the bathroom door. The sheetrock was damaged due to the battery. Nicholas then began striking [her] in the head and face area with open and closed hands. [She] was able to get to the living room of the residence before falling on the ground.
“While on the ground, Nicholas wrapped his arm around [her] neck, which prevented her from being able to breathe normally. Nicholas released [her], grabbed [her] by her hair, and began to drag [her] across the floor, telling her to get out of the house.
“[She] still had Nicholas’ cell phone in her hand during this time. Nicholas attempted to grab the phone from [her]. [She] refused to give Nicholas the phone. Nicholas then bent down and bit [her] on her back near her right shoulder blade.
“During the physical altercation, Nicholas pulled [her] shirt off. Nicholas then ‘threw’ [her] off the back steps of the house with no clothing covering the top half of her body, and locked the door.”
The victim stated that she knocked on the door, begging to be let back inside. When he let her back in, he hit her in the back of the head with an object as she walked past him. The abusive incident continued to escalate.
“Nicholas then walked outside of the residence to his [vehicle], retrieved a silver and black Smith and Wesson handgun and initially pointed the gun at [her],” the report continued. “Nicholas turned the gun to the ground and fired one round into the ground within approximately six feet from where [she] was standing. Nicholas then entered the vehicle and drove away from the residence.”
Officers attempting to serve a warrant on Bryant located his vehicle parked at Hinton Park. One of the officers knew that the victim’s mother’s house was in the 1000 block of Mark Drive, which is within walking distance of Hinton Park. The officers proceeded to that address in an attempt to locate Bryant.
There were two people home at that time, including the victim. Both stated that Nicholas Bryant was not in the residence. However, the second person did contact the homeowner and gained her permission for the police to conduct a search. Bryant was located in a bedroom closet and was taken into custody without incident.
Bryant has been booked and charged with domestic abuse with strangulation, domestic abuse aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm by a felon — all three charges are felonies.
All subjects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.