A Bargersville man was arrested twice in the past week on domestic violence-related charges, one involving threats to set fire to an apartment.
Santiago Jesus Heiny, 39, was arrested on a warrant Saturday for an Oct. 16 incident that resulted in charges of arson, a Level 4 felony, as well as strangulation, domestic battery and intimidation, all Level 6 felonies.
On Friday, Heiny was arrested for a separate incident that occurred that evening and resulted in additional felony charges of strangulation and domestic battery.
Heiny allegedly battered a woman at a Bargersville apartment, according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Johnson County Circuit Court. Heiny has a history of domestic battery, including a 2017 conviction in Marion County, according to online court records. His recent domestic battery charges are elevated as a result, court documents show.
According to statements the victim gave to Bargersville police about five hours after the first incident, at 5:30 a.m. Oct. 16, Heiny allegedly put his hands around the woman’s neck and also put his hands on another woman who had come over to retrieve an item from the victim, according to court documents.
During the exchange, Heiny was screaming threats and abusive phrases at the women. At one point, Heiny began pouring vodka and lighter fluid on the floor and threatening to burn down the apartment, court documents show.
Police went to the apartment at 9:52 a.m. Oct. 16, when the victims reported the incident, said Jeremy Roll, public information officer for the Bargersville Police Department.
Officers found a still angry and screaming Heiny, liquid on the floor, an empty bottle of lighter fluid and two empty bottles of vodka, Roll said.
In a recording provided by the victim, Heiny can be heard saying, “I’m going to burn this (expletive) down,” court documents show. The victim can also be heard pleading with Heiny to not burn down the apartment.
The Bargersville Fire Department was called to the scene that morning to clean up the accelerants Heiny had placed in the apartment, Roll said.
If Heiny had set fire to the apartment, residents of 15 other units in the complex would have been put in danger in addition to the victims, according to court documents.
Roll said Heiny was not arrested that day because five hours had passed between the incident and the report of the crime, and because the victim had a safe place to go.
“If it happens then and there, we will arrest them. But if there isn’t a freshness to the crime, we would typically have the prosecutor’s office review the charges,” Roll said.
Bargersville police were again called to the victim’s apartment on Friday, shortly after midnight, when the victim reported Heiny had, again, put his hands around her neck, according to court documents.
This time, Heiny allegedly threatened to torture the victim if she screamed for help, saying that he was going to cut off her fingers and kill her, court documents show.
The victim, who was alone this time, was eventually able to free herself from Heiny’s grasp and knocked on the doors of her neighbors for help, documents show.
The victim called 911 for help minutes after escaping, but Heiny had already fled the area when police arrived, according to court documents. Police located and arrested Heiny later that night after he was spotted walking along State Road 135, near Enclave Blvd.
Heiny bonded out of jail following his Friday arrest, but was again booked into the Johnson County jail on Saturday, when a warrant was issued for his arrest for the Oct. 16 incident.
Heiny remains in jail on $3,500 cash-only bond. Circuit Court Judge Andrew Roesener approved a request from the Johnson County Prosecutor’s Office for a higher-than-standard bond.
