$20K bail for man accused of beating his girlfriend

The Superior Court has imposed a $20,000 cash bail on a man who is accused of beating his girlfriend in a fit of rage.

During a bail hearing last Wednesday, Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph Camacho imposed a $20,000 cash bail on John Jacob Sablan Magofna who is being accused of beating his girlfriend.

Magofna, 28, is facing charges of disturbing the peace, assault, and assault and battery.

Following his hearing, Camacho remanded Magofna back to Department of Corrections custody and ordered him to return to court on Dec. 21, for a preliminary hearing. Magofna’s arraignment is set for January 2023.

According to court documents, Department of Public Safety officers were dispatched to a residence in Kagman last Monday at around 3:28am to respond to a disturbance call. At the scene, police met with the caller and victim of this case, who was in tears, claiming that her boyfriend, Magofna, had been assaulting her.

Police who responded to the call said they observed swelling on the woman’s leg and faint red marks on her neck.

In a brief interview with the victim at the scene, she told police that when Magofna came home from work at around 12:20am, they got into a heated argument and the defendant hit and shoved her.

After the argument, the victim decided that she would sleep in the guest room of their residence and proceeded to move some of her clothes there with a basket, further angering Magofna.

The victim said Magofna pulled the basket from her before using both his hands to push her back into their room.

When the victim fell onto a bed, Magofna allegedly started hitting her in the face and when she blocked her face, he then hit the back of her head.

After the bedroom assault, the victim said she went to the living room to call family members to pick her up, but they never did. When Magofna heard what she was doing in the living room, he followed her.

In the living room, Magofna allegedly pushed the victim onto a couch and started to hit her again. She claims she tried to push Magofna off of her and yell but he pinned her down and covered her mouth with his hands so she just waited for him to stop beating her.

When Magofna went to bed, the victim said that’s when she called police for help.

The victim also told police that Magofna had beaten her up before.

The defendant was arrested at their residence and transported to DOC after speaking with the victim.