Officers arrested 59-year-old William Barrett and charged him with First Degree Murder.
WASHINGTON — Detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department’s Homicide Branch have made an arrest in connection with the recent death at the Ivy City Hotel.
Friday afternoon officers arrested 59-year-old William Barrett and charged him with First Degree Murder.
Earlier in the day Friday, officers responded to the hotel for reports of an unconscious person. When they arrived at the hotel in Northeast, they found 36-year-old Romaine Maddox inside of a hotel room, suffering from trauma to the body. Maddox was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to a DC Medical Examiner, she had cuts on her face, linear marks on her neck, blunt force trauma to her forehead, deformity to the right side of the head, and the back left side of her head.
Detectives investigating the homicide suggest Maddox and Barrett knew one another. Surveillance footage taken from the hotel placed them in the hotel lobby checking in together at 7:20 p.m. on Thursday. A camera, that covers the small hallway and door where the two were staying, captured audio of Maddox screaming “get off me!” and “help” at 2:19 a.m. on Friday.
The same camera captured Barrett leaving the room at 9:07 a.m. wearing blue jeans and black jacket. Two hours later, an employee is seen using a key card to open the door of the hotel room. The employee leaned in and quickly shut the door.
Officers arrived shortly after, and spoke with the hotel manager. The manager gave police a copy of the I.D. Barrett used to check-in. After a short time, Barrett was arrested and taken into custody. An officer noticed blood on Barrett’s head and face, while placing him into the police car.
Once in police custody, Barrett waived his right to counsel and spoke with detectives. Barrett told police he and Maddox were in a non-exclusive romantic relationship for about a year. The two checked into the Ivy City Hotel where they had sexual intercourse. But later in the evening, Barrett said Maddox turned violent.
Barrett blamed Maddox’s behavior on alcohol and drug abuse. He said the two were having an argument and it turned physical. Maddox reportedly punched Barrett in the chest, head, and back. Barrett then took his belt and began to choke Maddox with it until she was unconscious. He told police he thought he had killed her.
A few minutes later, Maddox regained consciousness and started screaming for help. Barrett said he punched her once he heard the screams. Completely enraged, he took the lid off the toilet tank and struck her in the head multiple times, until the lid broke into pieces. Barrett claims he “blanked out” during this time.
After the violent attack, he told police he fell asleep in the hotel room. When he woke up the next morning, he saw Maddox was not moving and cold to touch, so he left.
Police have not released when his first court appearance will be.
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