Argument About Money, Cigarettes Leads to Second-Degree Assault Charge

A local man is facing a slew of charges after being arrested earlier this month on warrants and an assault accusation from February, according to police.

Shaun P. Drew, 33, of Pavillion Drive in Penacook, was arrested at 1:53 p.m. on May 5, 2015, and charged with second-degree assault and domestic violence assault, both felonies, as well as simple assault, obstructing report of a crime or injury, domestic violence-simple assault, domestic violence-obstructing report of a crime or injury, and two bench warrants, one of them a felony.

According to a court affidavit, on Feb. 23, an officer was sent to headquarters to speak with a woman who alleged that her boyfriend, Drew, had assaulted her on Feb. 20.

The woman alleged that at their home on Pavillion Drive at around 2 p.m. on the day in question, the couple became involved in an argument about “money and their lack of cigarettes.” She stated that she was using Drew’s cellphone at the time and he allegedly came up from behind her and put her in a headlock. She alleged that it was difficult to breath due to him squeezing her throat and choking her. He later took the phone away from her and let her go, she alleged.

The woman then called 911 and Drew allegedly grabbed her phone and hung up the call. Dispatch attempted to call back immediately but Drew reportedly ignored the call. The woman said she took the couple’s daughter and locked herself in the child’s bedroom until her son came home from school around 3 p.m. Her mother came to pick up the kids around 5 p.m.

“(The woman) stated that she waited to report this until the kids were with her mother,” the officer alleged. “(She) stated she was afraid if she reported this while the kids were with Drew’s parents, she would not be able to get the kids back.”

The officer noted that the woman was bruised on the right side of her face along the jawbone and she stated it was difficult to talk. While the two were speaking, Drew was arrested by another officer on a bench warrant and for being a habitual offender.

When Drew arrived at the station, the officer interviewed him and he reportedly stated that the incident was only an argument. He denied that it was physical.

“He stated he would never hit a woman even though she always assaults him,” according to the report.

Drew allegedly admitted to taking his cellphone back but added that he was “very careful to grab the cell phone only and never touched her,” according to the officer. When asked about the bruising on her body, “Drew stated he did not assault her and she may have done it to herself or had a friend do it.”

An affidavit was filed on Feb. 23, and Drew was arrested on May 5, at the home on an active warrant out of Concord District Court for nonappearance in court on the habitual offender charge, $2,900 cash to settle. He was held and arraigned the next day.

Editor’s note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Concord Police Department. It does not indicate a conviction. Click this link to find out how to get a name removed from a New Hampshire Patch police report.