Dollar Tree employee and Gene Bass of Pacific Coast Security testify in sexual battery case

Jury selection was completed yesterday in Courtroom 3 for Elhadji Ba. He is charged with sexual battery by restraint. Alleged victim is Jane Doe.

The victim, Jasmine Covington, briefly testified yesterday and this morning.

Dollar Tree assistant manager, Shaun Arrington who called the police. Another employee, Samantha Ruiz was approached by the alleged victim. The July 16, 2019 alleged incident took place at the Dollar Tree store in the Myrtletown Shopping Center.

Arrington said there were four employees and "10 to 15" customers in the store around 9/9:30 a.m. on July 16. The alleged incident happened near the freezers, located at the back store. One employee was in the stockroom, a cashier upfront, Arrington and Ruiz were three aisles away. A "flustered" Covington approached Ruiz, who informed Arrington about the allegations. Arrington said Covington was "hesitant" around Ba.

During cross examination, Arrington acknowledged that when he informed Ba about Covington's allegations and said he was calling the police, Ba did not flee.

Eugene "Gene" Bass, owner of Pacific Coast Security, testified before the mid afternoon break. His company provides security for that shopping center. Surveilance footage was provided by Bass to District Attorney Investigator Ryan Hill.

Bass testified that of the 14 cameras, three point towards the Dollar Tree.

Other witnesses include EPD Officer Nicholas Jones and DA Investigator Ryan Hill.

Deputy District Attorney Stacey Eads is the prosecutor for this case. Deputy Conflict Counsel R.J. Leohner is Ba's attorney.

She is fine with her name being public. It has also been stated several times in open court and is public record and she is not a minor. The complaint did list her as Jane Doe and I checked with the DA.