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Barbour grand jury indicts 31

PHILIPPI — A Grafton man accused of taking a woman into the woods, holding her at gun point and forcing her to have sex, is one of 31 individuals indicted by a Barbour County grand jury.

Randall Lewis Utt, 55, of Grafton, was indicted on one felony count of kidnapping, three felony counts of sexual assault in the first degree, one felony count of wanton endangerment involving a firearm and four felony counts of use or presentation of a firearm during the commission of a felony.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Barbour County Magistrate Court, on June 21, 2018, officers with the Taylor County Sheriff’s Department received a walk-in complaint in reference to a sexual assault that had happened the same day.

The alleged victim reportedly told police she and Utt had traveled to a location off of Pleasant’s Creek Road because Utt wanted to “show her his marijuana plants he was growing.”

Once at that location, the alleged victim said Utt “held her at gun point” and threatened to kill her if she did not have sex with him, court documents indicate.

The alleged victim said the pair traveled into the woods where Utt “bound her hands with electrical tape” and laid her down on an emergency heat blanket before having sexual intercourse with her against her will, the complaint states. The alleged victim said Utt used clothes pins to pin to her body and rubber bands to flick her and cause “pain and suffering.”

Taylor County law enforcement were led by the alleged victim to the area of the alleged incident, which was discovered to be off of Bartlett Run Road in Barbour County. Officers located an emergency blanket, broken electrical tape, rubber bands and clothes pins at that location, according to the complaint. The alleged victim also provided a detailed description of the firearm, Utt’s clothing and the vehicle.

At approximately 2:52 a.m. on the same day, officers executed a search warrant at Utt’s Grafton residence and seized a firearm and clothing matching the descriptions given by the alleged victim, police said.

A hat was discovered inside the vehicle parked at Utt’s home that the alleged victim said he was wearing at the time of the alleged incident, according to the complaint.

Other indictments handed down include:

Christopher L. Larew, 35, of Tunnelton, was indicted on one felony count of fleeing in a vehicle in a manner showing a reckless indifference to the safety of others, one felony count of possession of a stolen vehicle, one felony count of destruction of property and one felony count of driving while license revoked for driving under the influence of alcohol — third offense.

David A. Gardner Jr., 32, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of strangulation, five felony counts of wanton endangerment involving a firearm, one misdemeanor count of domestic battery, one misdemeanor count of domestic assault and two felony counts of child neglect creating risk of injury.

Chad A. Price, 44, of Philippi, was indicted on one felony count of delivery of a controlled substance and one felony count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver.

April S. Row, 38, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, one felony count of conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substances Act, one felony count of conspiracy and one misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance.

Tommy L. Tharp, 28, of Kingwood, was indicted on one felony count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver, one felony count of conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substances Act, one felony count of conspiracy and one misdemeanor count of possession of a controlled substance.

Ashley N. Harrelson, 26, of South Charleston, was indicted on two felony counts of possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver and one felony count of prohibited person in possession of a firearm.

Tonya A. Warner, 36, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver, one felony count of conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substances Act and one misdemeanor count of shoplifting – first offense.

William E. Miller, 30, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver and one felony count of conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substances Act.

David L. Mayle, 28, of Grafton, was indicted on one felony count of possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver.

Richard P. Bracken, 27, of Philippi, was indicted on one felony count of escape and one count of destruction of property.

Todd M. Moore, 34, of Grafton, was indicted on one felony count of escape and one count of destruction of property.

Ashley M. Louk, 31, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of escape.

Steven R. Wilson, 32, of Philippi, was indicted on one felony count of escape.

Shasta D. Tenney, 26, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of embezzlement, three felony counts of forgery and three felony counts of uttering.

Brittney N. Hoffman, 30, of Flemington, was indicted on one felony count of financial exploitation of an elderly person and one felony count of conspiracy.

Patricia M. Parks, 28, of Flemington, was indicted on one felony count of financial exploitation of an elderly person and one felony count of conspiracy.

William E. Coontz, 52, of Volga, was indicted on two felony counts of prohibited person in possession of a firearm.

James J. Stanchick, 29, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of entry of a building other than a dwelling, one felony count of grand larceny, one felony count of destruction of property and one felony count of failure to appear.

John M. Jones III, 31, of Bridgeport, was indicted on one felony count of grand larceny and one count of procuring electricity with the intent to defraud.

Ryan N. Coberly, 28, of Coalton, was indicted on one felony count of grand larceny.

Robert V. Evans, 51, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of grand larceny.

Ralph J. Humphries, 45, of Philippi, was indicted on one felony count of false evidences, forgery, etc., of vehicle registration.

Richard S. Connally, 30, of Montrose, was indicted on one felony count of driving while license revoked for driving under the influence of alcohol — third offense.

Damien K. Golden, 29, of Belington, was indicted on one felony count of driving while license revoked for driving under the influence of alcohol — third offense.

Raymond H. McKinney Jr., 21, of Elkins, was indicted on one felony count of driving while license revoked for driving under the influence of alcohol — third offense.

Heather A. Walters, 30, of Philippi, was indicted on one felony count of shoplifting — third or subsequent offense.

Sarah J. Lambert, 25, of Philippi, was indicted on one felony count of failure to appear.

Ryan W. Starkey, 22, of Mt. Clare, was indicted on one felony count of failure to appear.

Corey J. Wells, 24, of Buckhannon, was indicted on one felony count of failure to appear.

Daniel L. Johnson, 34, of Philippi, was indicted on one felony count of failure to appear.

The cases were presented by Prosecuting Attorney Thomas Hoxie. Circuit Judge Shawn Nines presided.

Bond return hearings will be at 9 a.m. on June 5 at the Barbour County Circuit Courtroom.

An indictment is merely an accusation. All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

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