Wyatt

BUCKHANNON — An Upshur County man is facing felony and misdemeanor charges, including burglary and simple assault, after allegedly breaking into another man’s residence and attacking him.

Justin Harry Wyatt, 25, is charged with one count of burglary, a felony; one count of simple assault, one count of battery and one count of unlawful removal, injury to or destruction of property, all misdemeanors.

Wyatt is currently being held at the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $15,000 property/surety bond for the felony charge and on a $3,500 property/surety bond for the misdemeanor charge.

According to the criminal complaint filed by Trooper C. J. Elmore with the West Virginia State Police, on Dec. 19, Trooper C. C. Jones and Elmore were dispatched to a residence at Meadowlands Trailer Park in Buckhannon for a “disturbance in progress.”

Upon arrival at the residence, both officers observed a door with a broken window, shattered glass and “blood throughout the living room,” an overturned table and other items in disarray, the complaint states. A witness to the incident told officers that Wyatt had allegedly “used his fist” to break the glass and unlock the front door. Wyatt then allegedly entered the residence and charged at the witness’s boyfriend, the alleged victim, who was next to the witness in the living room.

The witness stated that Wyatt and the alleged victim began fighting on the floor of the living room while the witness was on a couch “directly in front of the altercation,” the complaint states. The witness then said Wyatt eventually left to go back to his residence also in Meadowlands Trailer Park.

The alleged victim had “multiple lacerations” on both his legs and was transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital for medical treatment, the complaint states.

Elmore and Jones made contact with Wyatt at his residence on the same date, the complaint states. Wyatt allegedly told them that the alleged victim and the witness owed him money from a few months prior and that he had recently lost his job after “failing a random drug test.” Wyatt allegedly said he began drinking and “had gotten angry,” which prompted him to go to the alleged victim’s residence.

According to the complaint, Wyatt allegedly told the officers that when he knocked on the alleged victim’s door and asked for the money, “they turned the lights out in the trailer.” This allegedly prompted Wyatt to break the window of the door with his fist.

Wyatt allegedly told officers that he then entered the residence and grabbed the alleged victim, getting on top of him, the complaint states. The altercation went to the floor, Wyatt allegedly told the officers, and “at some point,” the alleged victim grabbed Wyatt “around the neck” and struck him in the face. After the altercation, Wyatt returned to his own residence and waited for the police to arrive.