Editor’s note: This story has been edited to correct town where the accused resides.
A Palmer man indicted on sexual assault charges is out on bail after he fled the Kenai Peninsula before being picked up outside of Wasilla four days after Alaska State Troopers allege he attacked his girlfriend.
The Kenai Superior Court issued an arrest warrant for Levi T. Mchone, 24, on Feb. 26 following the assault of a woman in front of her two young children in a room at Otto Landing Inn off the Sterling Highway on Feb. 23, according to an affidavit filed by troopers.
Troopers arrested Mchone between Palmer and Wasilla the next day, said trooper spokesperson Megan Peters. The following day he was arraigned in Palmer District Court.
Mchone was indicted on March 7 at the Kenai Courthouse and released on bail the same day. According to court documents, Teresa Deguillo posted a $5,000 cash performance bond and assumed responsibility as his third party custodian.
Mchone was indicted on three counts of sexual assault in the first-degree, assault in the second-degree, assault in the third-degree, assault in the fourth-degree, kidnapping, interfering with a report of a crime involving domestic violence, and criminal mischief in the fourth-degree.
Calls made to Mchone’s attorney, Shana Thieler, and Otto’s Landing Inn were not returned Tuesday.
On Feb. 23, troopers were contacted by the victim at Central Peninsula following the report of a domestic violence incident at Otto Landing Inn in Sterling. The victim said her boyfriend had physically and sexually assaulted her earlier in the day, according to the affidavit filed by trooper Jack LeBlanc.
The woman identified her boyfriend as Mchone, who she has been in a relationship for the past six months and had been staying at the inn with him for the past several days, according to LeBlanc’s report. Her two-year-old son and five-year-old daughter were also staying in the room, according to the report.
At 6:30 a.m., the woman woke up and went out to the parking lot to have a cigarette and call a friend. While she was outside, she got a text from Mchone that said he was calling the police because she abandoned her kids. When she went back into the room, she said she could tell something bad was going to happen by the way he was looking at her, according to the affidavit.
She ran back outside but Mchone allegedly grabbed her hooded sweatshirt and dragged her inside where he slammed her head against the wall and dragged her to the room by her hair. Once in the room, he lifted her off the ground by her neck and threw her into the bathroom floor, according to the report.
The victim told police Mchone then threw her onto the bed and had sex with her against her will. During the alleged sexual assault, she told him to stop. Her daughter woke up and at that time, he stopped and offered to make her daughter breakfast, according to the affidavit.
She stated during that time Mchone had her in a chokehold and was strangling her, she though he was going to kill her, according to the affidavit.
Later in the day, the victim tried to call for help but Mchone threw her phone to the ground. She was eventually able to get her kids out of the room and call for help with the help of another man at the inn, according to the report. She told police Mchone appeared downstairs, gave her phone back and left the inn.
While at CPH, the Sexual Assault Response Team performed an exam and revealed multiple injuries and evidence of sexual abuse, according to the complaint.
The court issued a warrant for his arrest and labeled Mchone as a danger to the public and flight risk who has already fled the peninsula, according to court documents.
Mchone is scheduled for arraignment in the Kenai Superior Court in front of Judge Charles Huguelet on March 18, at the Kenai Courthouse.
Reach Dan Balmer at daniel.balmer@peninsulaclarion.com
