Jessy Lee, 35, Chester, Virginia, is currently being held in Huron County Jail awaiting extradition back to Columbiana County to face charges of abduction, felonious assault and grand theft-motor vehicle.

Lee is accused of forcibly abducting his ex-girlfriend from her residence in Newell, holding her a knifepoint and taking her car after she fled from him in East Liverpool in the early morning hours of Feb. 17.

When the female fled from Lee she ran to the East Liverpool Police Department where she spoke with an officer at approximately 2:33 a.m.

According to the police report an officer found the female in front of the police department doors and asked her what happened and she told the officer she had been assaulted by her boyfriend, Lee, who pulled a knife on her and took her vehicle by force while they were driving downtown.

While officers were talking to the female, dispatch received a call where the caller reported hearing a female screaming for help at around the same time the female reported fleeing the car screaming and at the same location reported by the female. A second witness reported the same thing the next day when officers were investigating and looking for camera footage in the area.

In her report to the police, the female said that Lee was her ex-boyfriend, and that the two of them have been separated for about two weeks due to the way he acted after the two of them lived together for about four months.

She told officers that Lee came to her apartment wanting to talk and then asked for a ride to his residence and she was hesitant to let him in. She also said that once he got into the apartment he whispered in her ear to not do anything stupid and to keep driving until and he would tell her where to go.

Once he got her in the car, they started driving toward Youngstown. She told him he didn’t have enough gas and got off state Route 11 at the Calcutta Exit where she went to BP and found them closed, so she headed toward Sheetz.

The female said at the gas station, she was ordered to pay at the pump in an attempt to keep her from going inside. After telling him she wanted to go inside, he followed her inside and followed her into the restroom, where she said he threatened her.

Officers verified what she said by going to Sheetz with officers from the St. Clair Township Police Department and watching the security footage which showed Lee following her into the bathroom and then exiting through the side door with the female while holding onto one arm and holding the other arm behind her back and forcefully pushing her out the door before making her get into the car.

After viewing footage, an officer was able to obtain the car license plate number and enter it as a stolen vehicle.

Officers determined that after driving away from Sheetz the female got off the highway at the Second Street exit and headed north on Jackson Street. The female said this is where he began punching her in the face and pulling her by the hair. She said when she stopped the car at the 5th Street intersection, Lee pulled a knife and held it to her throat. She turned on West 5th Street where she pulled off and fled the vehicle.

The officer noted he observed red marks on the side of her face where she said she had been punched and small scratches on her throat where she said he held the knife to her.

When she fled the vehicle and started running toward the police station, Lee took off in her car.

The officer had Hancock County checked the address provided to them as Lee’s, but they were unable to locate him or the vehicle. The officer told the Hancock County dispatch about the incident and that the female may need an escort when she returns home.

Two officers working to put together a media release to try to get information on Lee’s whereabouts discovered the missing car had the OnStar feature built in and had dispatch contact OnStar with the information on the situation. OnStar provided a real time live track of the vehicle’s location which was about three hours north of East Liverpool heading toward Sandusky in Huron County.

East Liverpool police then coordinated with local law enforcement in Huron County and fed them live feed information on the Lee’s location until they were able to stop him and take him into custody.

After Lee was taken into custody, an East Liverpool resident called the police station to report a black and gold knife in the street at Jackson Street.

Police Chief John Lane contacted the female and asked her about the knife Lee used on her, but she was unable to remember what the knife looked like. After it was described to her, she told Lane that she had just bought a new knife set for her home like that and one of the knives from the set was missing.

According to the police report, a DNA search warrant is expected to be executed to match DNA to the knife once Lee is extradited back to Columbiana County.

Lane said he does not know for sure when Lee will be extradited, but anticipates it being soon. He said it’s a matter of completing paperwork and a sheriff deputy going to pick him up and bring him back.

Lane commended all the law enforcement agencies involved in the situation and said he was amazed at how all the law enforcement agencies worked together to bring this resolution.

kgarabrandt@mojonews.com