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Serving Northern St. Louis County, Minnesota

Ely man faces rape charges

Keith Vandervort
Posted 11/29/17

ELY - An Ely man, 34, remains in the St. Louis County Jail after pleading not guilty to five felonies related to an alleged sexual assault last week. Bail was set at $350,000.

David Alan Nielsen …

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Ely man faces rape charges

Posted

ELY - An Ely man, 34, remains in the St. Louis County Jail after pleading not guilty to five felonies related to an alleged sexual assault last week. Bail was set at $350,000.

David Alan Nielsen was charged last Wednesday with criminal sexual conduct in the first degree, assault, threats of violence, and kidnapping.

According to police, the sheriff’s department as well as Ely police responded to Ely-Bloomenson Community Hospital on Nov. 20 on a report that a female juvenile has been sexually assaulted and threatened with a knife by an adult acquaintance. The adult was identified as Nielsen, and he was arrested the following morning.

Authorities said Nielson picked up the teenage victim while she was walking home from school on Monday, Nov. 20. He apparently knows the girl’s mother. The complaint said he told the 15-year-old he would teach her how to drive.

After the two made it to just outside of Ely, according to the complaint, Nielsen pulled out a knife and told the teen to take off all her clothes. She reported to police that he sexually assaulted her five or six times inside his vehicle. The complaint said that as he drove her home, Nielsen threatened to kill her if she told anyone, and also threatened her friends and family. The incident is still under investigation.

The kidnapping charge includes a maximum sentence of 40 years in prison and a $50,000 fine, while two counts of criminal sexual conduct are punishable with up to 30 years in prison and $40,000 fines.

Nielsen will make his next court appearance on Monday, Dec. 4, in the District Court in Virginia.

Court records indicate that Nielsen has numerous prior convictions dating back to 2001 in Minnesota, including felony crimes of domestic abuse, assault, assault of a police officer, auto theft, drug crimes, driving while intoxicated, and violating protection orders, as well as several misdemeanors.