A Colchester man is facing a charge of first-degree murder for allegedly stabbing to death a woman on Thursday afternoon who, he told police, he had met online earlier in the day.
Elijah Compagna, 27, pleaded not guilty late Friday morning to the murder charge during his arraignment in Chittenden County Superior criminal court in Burlington. The woman he was charged with killing was referred to in charging documents only as “Jane Doe.”
Police said in a release that the identity of the woman was being withheld pending confirmation of her identification and notification of her relatives.
During Friday’s hearing, Judge Timothy Doherty granted the prosecution’s request to hold Compagna without bail pending a further hearing in the case.
In addition to the first-degree murder charge, Compagna was also accused of violating his probation stemming from an earlier simple assault conviction.
Colchester Police Detective Sgt. Jesse Treier wrote in an affidavit in support of the murder charge that around 5:20 p.m. Thursday police received a call about a woman screaming at a residence on Florence Lane.
Officers responding to the residence reported they spoke to Tony Tsiba Kanga and Compagna and one of them said there was a woman inside who needed help, the affidavit stated.
Inside a second-story bedroom police found an unresponsive woman with duct tape over her mouth and blood on her neck, Treier wrote.
Police also found a “switch knife” on a counter in the bedroom, the charging document stated. A paramedic arrived at the scene and pronounced the woman dead.
Kanga told a different Colchester police officer that he was Compagna’s caregiver.
“Tony said that Eli is allowed to be alone for up to 30 hours at a time and is considered independent,” the affidavit stated Kanga told that officer. “Tony advised he primarily does Eli’s grocery shopping but Eli cooks his own meals. Tony was not able to tell me the reason he is Eli’s caregiver due to HIPAA reasons.”
Ring camera footage showed a woman arriving at the residence at about 4:45 p.m. Thursday, and Kanga told police he heard fighting and banging shortly after 5 p.m., the affidavit stated.
Kanga said he ran upstairs to where the noise was coming from but the bedroom door was locked, according to the charging document.
“Tony said he ran downstairs to try to get something to open the door and then ran back upstairs to try to get in again,” the affidavit stated, and that Compagna came out of the room soon after. Kanga told police he then texted his wife to call 911 and stayed with Compagna downstairs until police arrived.
“Tony advised me that EIi has a violent past but has never been violent towards him,” the charging document stated. According to the affidavit, Kanga had lived at the Florence Lane residence with Compagna since April 11. “Tony reported that Eli has had family members come and pick him up to bring him places but today was the first day that he had anyone over.”
Compagna, when later questioned by police, told them his shared living arrangement had been set up by the Howard Center, and Kanga was a shared living provider, the charging document stated.
Howard Center, in a statement Friday, said that for the organization “the health, safety, and well-being of our clients, staff, and community are at the heart of our values and are our highest priorities.”
The statement added, “We are deeply saddened by the tragic incident that occurred in Colchester and recognize the profound impact it has on our community.
The organization also said in the statement that due to state and federal privacy statutes they are not able to “share protected health information or identify individuals who have or are receiving services through Howard Center.”
Compagna admitted to police that he attacked the woman, striking and stabbing her several times, according to the affidavit. He also reported meeting the woman earlier in the day online, the filing stated.
The affidavit also stated Compagna told police, “I did it, it’s wrong,” and “I shouldn’t have done it.”
If convicted of the offense, Compagna faces a sentence of 35 years to life in prison.
