‘I went into a rage’: Complaint details moments before, after attack on UW-Madison student
By Kyle Jones
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MADISON, Wis. (WISC) — MADISON, Wis. — A criminal complaint filed Thursday in Dane County provides a clearer timeline in what prosecutors called “one of the most horrific sexual assaults in recent memory.”
Brandon Thompson, 26, of Brooklyn is charged with first-degree sexual assault causing great bodily harm, first-degree reckless injury and strangulation. Thompson was arrested in connection with what Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes called a “violent attack” on a UW-Madison student that occurred early Sunday morning.
According to the complaint, a woman was found naked and severely beaten in the 500 block of West Wilson Street at 3:18 a.m. no Sept. 3. The officer who first arrived at the scene described it as “one of the most horrifying things I’ve seen.”
The woman was taken to a nearby hospital where medical staff determined that she suffered a broken jaw and had been sexually assaulted and strangled.
According to the complaint, an MRI showed that the woman had also suffered a small brain bleed, multiple facial fractures and lost a tooth. She was put into a medically induced coma immediately after the assault.
The complaint alleges that residents near the scene of the attack called 911 after Thompson told them there was a woman who needed help. Thompson allegedly told a witness that he had found the woman in the street, naked and bloody, and carried her behind a home in the 500 block of West Wilson Street.
A witness later said that Thompson appeared “antsy” after 911 was called and left the scene before officers arrived. Thompson allegedly claimed he did not want to be around police because he was high.
Another witness told police that he saw dried blood on Thompson’s hands. Police did not find any blood in the road, however blood was allegedly found behind a house, on an A/C unit and on the ground.
A city camera showed the woman walking along West Washington Ave. at around 2:25 a.m. early on the morning of the attack. A Chevy sedan was shown parking at Brittingham Park at 2:26 a.m. and a man matching Thompson’s description was allegedly shown getting out and walking in the woman’s direction.
Footage from a building in the 100 block of South Bedford Street allegedly showed the woman walking past the door with a person following behind her. About a half hour later, the Chevy from Brittingham Park was caught by cameras turning onto South Bedford Street.
The complaint alleges that that the Chevy was registered to Thompson. Thompson was pulled over by Fitchburg police about two hours before the attack allegedly occurred. Body camera footage allegedly showed him wearing the same clothes during the traffic stop as he was when leaving his vehicle at Brittingham Park.
Thompson was arrested at Meriter Hospital. While speaking to detectives he allegedly admitted to hitting the woman and said “she came across a monster.”
Thompson allegedly said he didn’t remember sexually assaulting the woman but later said he “could have.”
“I went into a rage, when I came to, she was on the ground,” Thompson allegedly said. “The only thing I remember is just hitting.”
DNA found on the woman’s body allegedly matched Thompson with a probability of one in one quadrillion, the highest probability that the Wisconsin State Crime Lab will identify.
During an initial appearance Thursday, Thompson’s cash bail was set at $1 million.
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Jaymes Langrehrjlangrehr@wisctv.com608-277-5241
