Details in this report are disturbing.
D.C. resident Antoinette Forbes has now been missing for two weeks. She was last seen near her home in Northwest D.C. on Sept. 4.
Her ex-partner Russell Ashford – who pleaded guilty to assaulting Forbes in 2021 – faces gun possession charges in Pennsylvania. Neither he nor anyone else has been named a suspect in her disappearance, and D.C. police have not shared information on where Forbes could be.
For the first time, we’re hearing in Forbes’ own words the effect Ashford’s assault had on her life. Just two months before her disappearance, she described a “debilitating” injury to her eye and screws in her jaw.
“I spoke to some neighbors recently who said, ‘Antoinette, he tried to kill you,’” Forbes said July 9 in Montgomery County courtroom audio at a probation before judgment hearing for Ashford.
Forbes described what she called permanent injuries from the attack. According to court records, a neighbor in Chevy Chase witnessed Ashford repeatedly hit Forbes with a closed fist. She stands 5-foot-2 and weighs 115 pounds, police have said.
“I have a titanium plate in my cheek that I’m not supposed to be able to feel, but I can feel it. I have screws in my jaw,” she said. “And my finger is not healed properly. You know I mean, the eye especially is debilitating to some degree.”
‘I don’t think that’s right or fair’: Judge sided with Russell Ashford over Antoinette Forbes’ objection
Court records say Ashford pleaded guilty to the assault and was sentenced to 15 years, with all but nine months suspended, plus five years’ probation. He asked a judge earlier this year to change his conviction to probation before judgment, meaning he would no longer have a conviction in the case.
Ashford addressed the court before the judge ruled.
“Before that incident, I had not even had a traffic ticket since my teenage years. The painful lesson of the last few years have made me stronger and wiser, and in even better control of my actions,” he said.
The judge agreed with Ashford, over the objection of the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Before the ruling, Forbes was asked by the office how she would feel about Ashford getting the probation before judgment.
“I mean, I don’t think that’s right or fair given, again, the severity of the injuries and the situation that happened to me,” she said.
“But, you know, there was episodes of domestic violence and assault leading up to this very injurious crime,” she added.
Ashford was still subject to probation, court records say. He’s accused of violating his probation by breaking a condition that he would have no hostile contact with the son he shares with Forbes.
Investigators could be seen carrying bags of evidence out of Forbes’ home on Thursday afternoon.
Forbes’ friends said they’re still working to find her. Holly Wetzel shared her emotions upon learning more about Ashford’s attack on her dear friend.
“It’s very sad to me to know that she was alone,” she said. “She likely didn’t tell anyone because she wanted to protect other people. That’s, you know, who she was.”
D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department said the investigation into Forbes’ disappearance is ongoing.
Ashford is expected back in court on Sept. 28. An on/off girlfriend contacted police this week and said he asked her last summer to store his guns in her home, in violation of laws barring gun possession after a domestic violence conviction.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline by calling 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), visiting www.thehotline.org or texting LOVEIS to 22522.
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