A man strangled a woman before beating her to death with a ceramic toilet seat in a Washington, D.C., hotel room, according to new court documents.
The Metropolitan Police Department said officers responded to a report of an unconscious person in the 1600 block of New York Avenue Northeast around 11:20 a.m. Friday. Once inside a hotel room at the scene, they found a woman, identified as Romaine Maddox, 36, suffering from apparent trauma to her body, according to a news release. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
William Barrett, 59, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of Maddox, who was found dead Friday by an Ivy City hotel employee.
Detectives determined that Barrett and Maddox arrived at the hotel around 7:20 p.m. on Thursday, according to FOX 5 DC. Barrett told detectives that he and Maddox had been involved in a romantic relationship for more than a year.
SECOND DEM FACES RECOVERY EFFORT IN CRIME-RID CITY AFTER BUSINESS OWNER ENDURES VIOLENT ROBBERIES
A man strangled a woman before beating her to death with a ceramic toilet seat in a hotel room in Washington, D.C. (Celal Gunes/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Court documents indicate the couple entered room 123 of the hotel and neither was seen again on surveillance footage until approximately 10:20 p.m., when police say Maddox can be seen leaving the hotel room. completely naked hotel. He appeared to be out of the room for a few minutes before re-entering and staying there until shortly after 1am.
At approximately 1:15 a.m., police say Maddox left the room wearing only underwear and Barrett then came out, completely naked, appearing to look for her. The two returned to the room five minutes later, and within an hour, police say audio captured what sounded like a woman screaming “let me go” and “help.”
After that, no one was seen leaving or entering the room until Barrett left shortly after 9 a.m.
The hotel employee entered the room around 11 a.m. before being seen on camera quickly closing the door and running down the hallway, according to the affidavit.
US SERVICE MEMBER CATCHES FIRE OUTSIDE ISRAELI EMBASSY IN DC
William Barrett, 59, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of 36-year-old Romaine Maddox. (Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Police arrested Barrett after reviewing surveillance video and collecting evidence from the room, including a toilet tank lid that had broken into three pieces. Detectives said Barrett had blood on his head and face, his cell phone, two pairs of gloves, his boxers and his belt at the time of his arrest.
Barrett allegedly told police that he and Maddox got into an argument that turned physical after checking into the hotel. He said Maddox began punching him and “moving her mouth,” which led him to strangle her with her belt until she was unconscious.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
He allegedly said he thought he had killed Maddox after strangling her, but she suddenly woke up and started screaming for help. Barrett then punched her, grabbed the toilet tank lid and punched it several times, ultimately causing her lid to break into pieces.
Maddox suffered blunt force trauma to his forehead, head deformities and several lacerations, according to court documents. Barrett said he fell asleep after the attack and when he woke up, Maddox was not moving and his body was cold.
