A United States court document has revealed that Karl Von Batten, a US-based lobbyist associated with former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, was convicted in 2003 in connection with an assault involving his then-girlfriend.
The details are contained in a judgment of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals involving Cynthia D. Murphy, identified in the court record as Von Batten’s former girlfriend.
The court document identified Von Batten by the name “Karl M.E. Okeke.”
According to the judgment, Murphy and Von Batten began a romantic relationship in April 2003, but their relationship later became strained.
The court said that on July 4, 2003, Murphy attended a party at Von Batten’s apartment, where alcoholic beverages were consumed.
During the gathering, Murphy and Von Batten’s roommate, Katy Elizabeth Gaire, went into the bathroom for a private conversation.
The judgment said Gaire subsequently told Murphy that she had also been sexually involved with Von Batten several times after moving into the apartment.
According to the court record, Murphy became emotional after hearing the disclosure and began crying and shouting.
The judgment said Von Batten entered the bathroom during the ensuing confrontation and asked Murphy to leave his apartment.
The court further found that Von Batten lunged at Murphy while she was sitting on the edge of a bathtub, causing her to fall.
It said the altercation continued into the bedroom, where Von Batten allegedly dragged Murphy by her legs and arms, struck her repeatedly in the face, including around her eye, kicked her legs and buttocks, and pushed her against a wall.
The case later resulted in a domestic assault conviction against Von Batten in December 2003, according to the court record.
The appellate judgment arose from Murphy’s challenge to a civil protection order issued after she failed to leave Von Batten’s apartment when asked to do so.
A civil protection order is a court directive restricting contact between individuals and, depending on the circumstances, requiring one party to stay away from another.
In her appeal, Murphy argued that the protection order was improper because the alleged unlawful entry involved an offence against property rather than a person and therefore did not meet the statutory requirements for an intrafamily offence.
The appellate court, in addressing the case, provided details of the earlier relationship and assault proceedings.
The court record is now drawing attention because Von Batten has been identified as a lobbyist working in the United States on behalf of Atiku Abubakar, a former vice-president of Nigeria.
The court judgment documents events dating back to 2003 and concerns a case involving Von Batten under his former name, Karl M.E. Okeke.
