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PLEASANT GROVE — A Pleasant Grove man has been arrested and accused of kidnapping his ex-girlfriend and then shooting at a man she was with.
Bennie Roy Brownfield, 20, was booked into the Utah County Jail early Monday for investigation of two counts of attempted murder, kidnapping, assault, being a restricted person in possession of a weapon, threatening to use a weapon during a fight, and damaging a phone.
Brownfield "lured his ex-girlfriend to a location in Lehi where he then forced her to leave her phone and car at this location. Bennie told his ex-girlfriend to get in his vehicle, that he had a gun and that as long as she listened to him she would be safe," according to a police booking affidavit.
Brownfield also displayed a knife to force the woman to get into his vehicle, the affidavit states.
"The victim stated he brandished his knife to her and refused to allow her to leave. The victim stated she was scared and started crying. The victim told Bennie she did not want to go with him and that she did not want to go up to the house in Pleasant Grove. Bennie forced her to get in the car by showing his knife and telling her he had a gun and that she had to listen to him. Bennie then took the victim against her will, driving her from Lehi to Pleasant Grove," according to the affidavit.
On the way to Pleasant Grove, police say Brownfield told her he was going to shoot a man who had allegedly been with her the night before, in front of her.
Brownfield then lured that man to the Pleasant Grove home by telling him he had his cellphone. When the man arrived, "Bennie punched (him) in the face" and started to fight with him "by jumping on (his) back," the arrest report alleges. The man's mother, who drove with the victim to the house, was able to break up the fight.
"Bennie then went into the closet and grabbed a firearm, a .223 rifle," the affidavit says. "Bennie then came from his bedroom in the basement and pointed the rifle at the roommate who was standing in the kitchen. Bennie went to the front door and pointed the firearm at (the other man and his mother). Bennie fired a single shot from the rifle at the vehicle parked on the road at the driveway from the front door of the home."
The man and woman who were in the car were not injured.
The ex-girlfriend ran to a neighbor's home for help and to call 911.
When officers arrived, Brownfield was in the backyard. Police ordered him to come to the front of the house with his hands up, where he was taken into custody, according to the affidavit.
In January, after the ex-girlfriend had moved out, Brownfield went to the house where she was staying and smashed one of her car windows with a golf club, according to charging documents. He was charged in that incident in 4th District Court with property damage, a third-degree felony; and marijuana possession, a class B misdemeanor. The woman filed for a protection order against Brownfield on March 29, according to court records.
Domestic violence resources
Help for people in abusive relationships can be found by contacting:
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition: Utah's confidential statewide, 24-hour domestic violence hotline at 1-800-897-LINK (5465)
- YWCA Women in Jeopardy program: 801-537-8600
- Utah's statewide child abuse and neglect hotline: 1-855-323-DCFS (3237)
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233
