Man arrested in connection with beating incident

Police have arrested a man who they say was one of four people who brutally beat a victim, stole his car, phone and debit card, leaving him with a bloodied face, missing and broken teeth and no shoes or eyeglasses.

Levi Clowes, 20, was charged with first-degree assault, first-degree robbery and the theft of a vehicle. The assault and robbery charges are Class A felonies, which could result in a sentence of up to 30 years in prison. Judge Frank Miller issued a $100,000 cash-only bond.

Ultimately, the victim suffered lacerations that needed staples; a concussion; several broken, lost or damaged teeth; a broken nose; and several scrapes and bruises. The victim claimed he was beaten and forced to give up the code to unlock his cellphone.

According to a probable-cause document filed in the case by an officer whose name is redacted, the victim identified Clowes as one of his attackers after police were able to track down the suspect.

Police used the Flock license plate scanning system to track down the vehicle connected to the beating. The crime occurred Feb. 7, when officers responded to a robbery report. The probable-cause statement said when they found the victim, he had a large amount of blood on his face, head and clothing, that he was not wearing shoes and his pants pockets had been turned outwards.

The victim told officers he had been forced off the roadway by a white Ford Fusion while driving on Interstate 55. The probable-cause statement said that after being forced off the roadway, the suspect's vehicle was stolen, along with his cellphone and debit card.

Police used the Flock system to locate the Ford Fusion.

The victim then told officers he came to Cape Girardeau to meet up with "two white males and one white female" at a location on South Sprigg Street, the address of which was redacted. The victim told police one of the men asked him if he wanted to go to a "car meet", which he described as being "by the river with a large area where you can drive in a circle." The victim told police they took a rural road and was assaulted by multiple people. He said they forced him to give him his phone's passcode. The victim said he lost consciousness, and when he "came to" he was walking along I-55.

Police went to the area described by the victim and found dried blood in the parking lot as well as a broken pair of glasses, confirmed to be the victim's.

The probable-cause statement said police also identified the woman the victim had met with. The woman identified Clowes. According to the probable-cause statement, the woman sent Clowes a message asking what they were doing, "to which he told her not to worry about it". The woman had stated Clowes was one of the four male subjects who assaulted the victim, saying they beat him to the ground, and that Clowes was one of the subjects in the stolen vehicle.