Man charged with kidnapping, assault, rape

A 27-year-old man was due in court Tuesday afternoon facing felony counts of rape, kidnapping and assault.

Matthew Bell is accused of assaulting his live-in girlfriend at a residence on Samarra Drive in Mountain Home the morning of Jan. 14.

According to a report filed by Mountain Home police, Bell and the victim were having sex when his behavior became increasingly aggressive.

He refused to stop despite the victim's repeated demands that he was hurting her, adding that she felt he was raping her.

The victim left the bedroom where Bell confronted her about the rape remark. At that point, he allegedly placed both of his hands around her neck and began choking her to the point where she began to black out and lose consciousness.

The police report stated that the victim tried to leave the house and began screaming for help. Bell is accused of grabbing her by the hair and dragging her back into the bedroom.

For the next two hours, he held a knife to her neck, the police report stated. At the same time, he began stabbing the wall with the knife, indicating that he would cut or stab the victim. Bell is also accused of punching her in the head approximately 20 times during that attack.

According to the report, Bell then took the victim to another bedroom and stood in front of the doorway and refused to let her leave. He continued to hold a knife at her throat for another four hours.

At one point, the victim thought he had actually cut her due to amount of pressure he was applying to the knife, she later told police. The report indicated that Bell was highly intoxicted during the alleged incidents.

By 8 a.m. that morning, Bell had passed out. However, the victim told police that she remained in the home, fearing that he would kill her if she tried to leave.

Around 11 a.m., Bell's mother called him. After that conversation, the victim begged Bell to allow both of them to go to the hospital to have their wounds checked.

As she left the house, Bell allegedly began destroying furniture in the home. She then called police and reported the incident.

Police found Bell in the backyard of the home and took him into custody. The report indicating that he may have been trying to flee from authorities as authorities arrived.

During their search of the home, police recovered long locks of hair that were believed to belong to the victim. Bell remains in custody at the Elmore County jail after Judge George Hicks set his bond at $1 million.

Bell faces felony counts of rape, first-degree kidnapping, attempted strangulation and aggravated assault. He was also charged with misdemeanor counts of domestic violence and malicious injury to property.

According to the police report, Bell has a violent history of domestic violence and aggravated crimes. Canyon County officials issued a $100,000 bench warrant for his arrest on separate charges of aggravated assault in that county.