Court: Man denies involvement in Whippoorwill Lane home invasion
A 19-year-old man who was taken into custody Monday morning after delivering self-incriminating testimony in Columbus Recorder’s Court pleaded not guilty Thursday to a first-degree home invasion charge.
Ceuion Marque English was ordered held in the Muscogee County Jail without bond and the case was bound over to Superior Court.
Columbus Police Officer Dietre Burnett said authorities were called to a home in the 100 block of Whippoorwill Lane around 1:30 p.m. Saturday, minutes after a home invasion.
The 21-year-old male victim told officers two black men held him at gunpoint before forcing themselves into his residence. The victim said he stabbed one of the men with a knife in self-defense before they fled the scene in a 2003 Chevrolet Monte Carlo with a Georgia tag, Burnett said.
Police later received a call from a Midtown Medical Center official who said a man, identified as 21-year-old Alex Ramon Bales-Davis, was seeking treatment for a stab wound.
Burnett said police went to the hospital and found the Monte Carlo in the parking lot. One of the officers secured the vehicle while another official went inside of the building to capture the man, Burnett told the court.
Authorities showed the victim a photo of Bales-Davis and he identified him as one of the home invaders, Burnett said. The suspect was transported to the Public Safety Center at 510 10th St., where he was arrested later that day around 8 p.m.
English testified Monday when Bales-Davis appeared in Recorder’s Court on the first-degree home invasion. During the hearing, police said two people were in the Monte Carlo that fled the scene.
Moments later, English corrected the officers and said there were three. Judge Michael Cielinski then asked English how he knew three people were in the car.
English said because he was the third person but he denied any involvement in the home invasion, according to testimony.
Police then surrounded English and handcuffed him during the court hearing without incident. Burnett said she obtained a warrant charging him with first-degree home invasion and transported him to the Muscogee County Jail.
During an interview with police, English said his cousin, Bales-Davis, called him Saturday to tell him about a PlayStation that was being sold for $250. English said he agreed to help Bales-Davis pay for the gaming system.
English told police he met with Bales-Davis and a man named “Nick Parker.” He identified “Parker” as his cousin’s friend, Burnett testified Thursday.
Police didn’t mention where English claimed to have met the men, but she testified that English said they all ended up at outside of the Whippoorwill Lane home.
English told police he was in backseat of the Monte Carlo when he saw “Parker” and Bales-Davis go inside of the home. English said they both ran from the home moments later and Bales-Davis was bleeding, according to police.
“Parker” drove them away from the scene, English allegedly told authorities. English said “Parker” dropped Bales-Davis to the hospital and then fled the area.
Police declined to comment about the incident following the Thursday hearing, so it’s unclear if authorities have officially identified a third suspect in the case.
Bales-Davis pleaded not guilty Monday to first-degree home invasion. He was ordered held without bond and the case was bound over to Superior Court.
— Sarah is a crime and safety reporter at The Ledger-Enquirer. You can contact her on Twitter at @SarahR_92.
This story was originally published September 17, 2015 at 2:05 PM with the headline "Court: Man denies involvement in Whippoorwill Lane home invasion ."