Maryland Man Found Guilty of Assaulting Man With Metal Pipe In Dispute at Northeast Washington Towing Company

WASHINGTON -- Dominic White, 30, of Lanham, Md., has been found guilty by a jury of charges for assaulting a man with a metal pole at a towing establishment in Northeast Washington. In addition, White and a co-defendant, Phanessa Haynes, 29, of Washington, D.C. were found guilty of charges of insurance fraud and conspiracy to commit insurance fraud.

The verdicts, which were returned March 24, 2017 in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, were announced today by U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips. Both defendants are to be sentenced on May 24, 2017, by the Honorable Juliet McKenna.

According to the government's evidence, on Nov. 4, 2014, at approximately 5 p.m., Haynes arrived at a towing company in the 1000 block of Kenilworth Avenue NE to pick up her car, which was getting its rims and tires replaced. She quickly noticed that the job wasn't completed to her standards and became angry at the man who was doing the work. She called her boyfriend -- White - multiple times expressing her frustrations.

White raced over and once arriving, picked up a metal pipe. Haynes pointed to the victim, and said, "That's him, that's the one." White rushed to the victim and struck him with the metal pipe a couple of times, hitting and injuring him. He then dropped the pipe and fled. The victim's head injuries required 18 staples and resulted in debilitating migraines for approximately a year. Following the attack, other employees at the towing shop called 911 and one gave a partial license tag of White's car. White was later identified as the owner of a car with the same make and color described by witnesses, with a similar tag.

Further investigation showed that Haynes and White were involved with an insurance policy that was purchased by Haynes, which led to her car being at the towing establishment on the day of the assault. Soon after purchasing the policy, and making sure it covered tires and rims, Haynes filed a claim with the insurer for "stolen" rims.

White was arrested on March 30, 2015, and Haynes was arrested at the scene on Nov. 4, 2014.

In announcing the verdicts, U.S. Attorney Phillips commended the work of those who investigated the case from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD). He also expressed appreciation for the assistance provided by the FBI's Cellular Analysis Survey Team and the U.S. Marshals Service. He acknowledged the efforts of those who worked on the case from the U.S. Attorney's Office, including Assistant U.S. Attorneys Stephen Rickard, Daniel Lenerz, Jocelyn Ballantine, Fernando Campoamor-Sanchez, Kathryn Rakoczy, and Opher Shweiki; Victim/Witness Advocate James Brennan; Paralegal Specialists Richard Cheatham, Debra McPherson, Crystal Waddy, and Tiffany Fogle; Criminal Investigator, Melissa Matthews; Litigation Technology Specialists, Josh Ellen and Leif Hickling; Investigative Analyst, Zachary McMenamin, and Computer Forensic Examiner; John Marsh.

Finally, he commended the work of Assistant U.S. Attorneys Karen Seifert and David Misler, who investigated and indicted the case, and Monica Trigoso and Alysa Kociuruba, who prosecuted the case.