ST. THOMAS — A man appeared before a judge in the V.I Superior Court on Monday to face a number of charges including rape, after a woman he once dated reported alleged sexual activity between the man and her minor daughter.

Marvin Stancliffe, age 33, was arrested and charged on December 3 with first-degree rape, second-degree aggravated rape, first-degree unlawful sexual contact, first-degree assault and child abuse.

According to documents before the court, the minor’s mother visited the Domestic Violence Unit on November 9 to make the complaint. She told police that she was at home that day when she heard a ringing sound coming from her daughter’s bedroom. She then went into her daughter’s bedroom and discovered that the ringtone was coming from the minor’s tablet. The mother further stated that after picking up and and looking at the tablet, she recognized the number on the screen as that of Marvin Stancliffe, a man the mother had previously dated.

The woman said she then woke up her daughter and asked her why Stancliffe was calling her at that hour of the morning. According to court documents, the mother then told her daughter to answer the call. When her daughter answered, the mother recognized Stancliffe’s voice when he said, “Wait, you sleeping man? I’ll call you back later then.”

Court documents further stated that when the call ended, the mother asked her daughter what was going on, however the daughter responded by stating nothing was happening. The mother then  removed the tablet from her daughter’s bedroom and looked at the call history as well as messages between the minor and Stancliffe. She discovered messages and voice notes of a sexually explicit nature, according to court documents. When she asked her daughter again if she had been having relations with Stancliffe, the minor said that she was sorry.

The mother said she took pictures of the WhatsApp conversation between Stancliffe and her daughter and told her daughter that she was willing to forward them for further investigation. She said that while her daughter never fully admitted to having sex with Stancliffe, she, the mother, wanted an investigation to be done. She then gave police permission to speak with the minor.

According to the probable cause fact sheet, the minor told police that she knew Stancliffe as a family friend. One day she met with him and he repeatedly asked her for her number which she felt pressured into giving him. She said that one night she was home and Stancliffe texted her to ask who was at home. When she told him that the others were sleeping, he said that he was coming over.

Court documents further stated that Stancliffe texted the minor and told her that he was outside, and when she opened the door for him, he entered the residence and immediately hugged her, grabbed her buttocks and began to fondle her. She said he attempted to kiss her but she moved her head. The minor then detailed to police the alleged sexual assault which took place. When he was finished, Stancliffe left the residence.

Later that morning, Stancliffe returned to the home while the family was having breakfast. The minor’s mother called her into the kitchen not knowing what had transpired hours before. She said her mother left the kitchen and Stancliffe cornered her, reminding her not to tell anyone what had taken place earlier that morning. The minor told police that she and Stancliffe had sexual intercourse about five times.

On November 23, police attempted to make contact with Stancliffe but the number was unreachable. Police then reached out to a female acquaintance of Stancliffe who said that his phone was disconnected but he was reachable via WhatsApp. It was later revealed that Stancliffe was on probation for another matter. Police asked the acquaintance to have Stancliffe contact the police station.

Later that day, Stancliffe called the police station informing police of his pending matter. He said that he was worried about missing his sign-in due to him not having a working number and he did not want to get into trouble. Stancliffe then told police he would come in on November 25 but never showed.

On December 3 he turned himself in and was placed under arrest.

In court on Monday, a judge ruled that Stancliffe must post the full amount of the $100,000 bail amount to secure his release. If he is able to make bail, Stancliffe will be placed under 24-hr house arrest with electronic monitoring.

He is barred from leaving the St. Thomas-St. John District without the court’s written permission and must report to the Office of Probation once a week. Stancliffe has been ordered to have no contact, directly or indirectly with the minor, her mother or any witnesses. He must maintain a minimum distance of at least 50 ft away from the minor, and is prohibited from possessing any firearm, ammunition or dangerous weapon. His next court appearance is on December 23, 2022.

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