Local News

Pest control employee arrested for rape of Tarboro teenage girl inside apartment

An employee of Morgan Pest Control is facing charges after Tarboro police said he forcibly raped a 15-year-old girl inside an apartment.

Posted 2024-01-12T21:29:02+00:00 - Updated 2024-01-13T00:28:47+00:00

Pest control employee arrested for rape of Tarboro juvenile inside apartment

Heidi Kirk

, WRAL eastern North Carolina reporter

Tarboro police arrested a pest control employee Thursday night on a charge of raping a 15-year-old girl.

Police said Gregory Battle was working around noon Thursday at the Northgate Apartments at 400 E. Northern Blvd. in Tarboro when they got a report of rape.

Battle, who works for Rocky Mount-based Morgan Pest Control, entered an apartment as part of that work, police say.

By the time police arrived, Battle had left the scene. Edgecombe County deputies arrested him at about 7 p.m. Thursday.

Authorities are holding Battle at the Edgecombe County Detention Center on no bond. Battle is due to appear in court on Thursday, Jan. 17.

WRAL News spoke Friday with Gwendolyn Pitt, a resident of the Northgate Apartments for 12 years. She said she's never seen anything happen like Thursday's incident.

"I hate it. It is terrible," Pitt said. "I am wondering, did they get the keys back? Do they still have they keys to fit the apartments out here?

"It's questionable. [There are] a lot of questions."