Boyfriend Beat, Threatened Woman for 4 Days: Police

A South Bethlehem woman was slapped, kicked, hit multiple times with a baseball bat, threatened with a knife and threatened with her life over four days before police were finally called to intervene and take her boyfriend away in handcuffs on Sunday, according to court records.

The mother and aunt of the defendant, Nakhiem Battle, told police that they had seen him be abusive and threaten to kill his 24-year-old girlfriend, according to the arrest affidavit.

The girlfriend told police that the violence began on Thursday, when Battle kicked her while they shopped at the Walmart on MacArthur Road in Whitehall, according to the affidavit.

Then, according to arrest papers:

• An argument started at their E. Fifth Street home early Friday morning, which led to Battle trying to stab his girlfriend with a knife. He also put his hands around her throat and hit her in the leg with a baseball bat.

• Over the next two days, Battle slapped the woman in the face—hard enough to leave a handprint—and hit her three more times with the baseball bat—once in the neck, once in her back and once in her lower right leg.

• On Sunday, Battle brandished a knife at the woman and told her he was going to “put [her] six feet under.”

Police responded to the home at a little after 10 a.m. on Sunday morning and arrested Battle, 25, who was charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, terroristic threats and harassment.

He was arraigned before on-duty District Judge Joseph Barner of Lower Nazareth Township and committed to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $25,000 bail.