The 38-year-old heir to one of America’s biggest sugar producers is accused of being “enraged” by sitting next to a gay couple at a Florida steakhouse and punching his girlfriend in a fit of rage. He was arrested last week.
Alexander “Nico” Fanjul, whose family owns and operates subsidiaries such as Florida Crystals, Domino Sugar, and American Sugar Refining, was taken into custody in Palm Beach, Florida. on Jan. 28, after his girlfriend told authorities she thought she was going to die at his hands.
Police said they responded to the home around 11:30 p.m. after a neighbor reported hearing a woman screaming.
Police said when they arrived at the scene, they heard a woman yelling, “Get away!”
They then found Fanjul “sitting on the floor in a defensive ‘fetal’ position, observed bleeding from the face” and “standing over the female subject.”
After separating Fanjul and the unidentified woman, she told police that she had been dating Fanjul for about a year and a half and that the two had gone to dinner earlier that night at Flagler Steakhouse at the upscale Breakers Hotel. He said he had gone out to
“Mr. Fanjul initially became enraged because the two of them were seated next to a gay couple at the restaurant during dinner,” according to a police affidavit.
“Fanjul expressed his dissatisfaction.” [the victim] Restaurants have become increasingly frustrating. ”
The victim also said that when Fanjul returned to his home, he was still ranting about his “dissatisfaction with the restaurant” and told Fanjul to stop talking about it.
“That’s when Fanjul started punching.” [the victim] “He was punched in the face with a closed fist, causing bruising, bleeding and swelling to his face,” the police affidavit states.
She also allegedly said that Fanjul “continued to kneel on her face, causing her considerable pain, and while doing so, Fanjul forced her to undress.” [the victim’s] I took my wallet off my shoulder. ”
When the victim pulled out her cell phone to call 911, Fanjul grabbed her hand and slammed the victim and cell phone to the ground, shattering the device, police said.
Because she didn’t have a cell phone, the victim said she “started screaming for help,” at which point Fanjul “threw her to the ground to prevent her from getting help or running away. He was forcibly dragged into the residence.”
The victim said once inside, Fanjul strangled her with both hands and she began having extreme difficulty breathing.
Police noted in the report that there were visible marks around the victim’s neck and blood stains on the floor.
Police said when they searched Fanjul that night to take him into custody, they also found an envelope containing a powdered substance believed to be cocaine in his wallet.
Fanjul is currently charged with strangulation, false imprisonment, robbery, victim molestation and harassment, criminal mischief, and felony possession of cocaine.
He was released on $180,000 bail on Friday, but his lawyer said he denies the charges against him. According to the Palm Beach Post.
However, this is not the first time Fanjul has been accused of domestic violence.
In 2013, “The Real Housewives of New York City” star Tinsley Mortimer was hospitalized with a head injury while publicly dating Fanjul.
Two 2014 police reports also revealed that Fanjul allegedly suffocated Mortimer with a pillow and forced his head against the pavement, a charge denied by Fanjul’s wealthy family at the time.
Police were also called to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Fort Martin on suspicion of domestic violence. Lauderdale, Florida, on Mortimer’s birthday in 2014, but she did not press charges.
“Unfortunately, we’ve learned that it’s easy to find yourself in a situation like this,” Mortimer said of the turbulent period. [domestic abuse] More than you think. ”
“Once you get stuck in that cycle, it’s really hard to break out of it,” she says. he told the Daily Mail in 2017.
“I definitely wasn’t myself at that time, and it wasn’t until I was arrested that I was able to get out of it. The cycle was broken, and I thank God.”
she also told PEOPLE Here’s what he said about their two-year relationship: I was also going to be one of the tragedies you see on TV. ”
Fanjul did not comment to People magazine at the time.
