Man allegedly kidnapped ex-girlfriend

A Medical Lake-area man has been charged with kidnapping his estranged girlfriend and attempting to rape her in an Aug. 9 incident in which he shot himself.

Tony W. Desautel, 34, faces trial next month in Spokane County Superior Court on one count of first-degree kidnapping and one count of attempted second-degree rape.

According to court documents, Desautel imprisoned his estranged girlfriend at gunpoint on Aug. 9 when she went to his home at 24527 S. Pine Springs Road to retrieve some of her belongings. She had moved out about a month earlier, ending a 2 1/2 -year relationship.

Authorities allege that Desautel accused the woman of cheating on him, pleaded with her to return to him and tied her up on his bed at gunpoint when she tried to leave. While she was tied to the bed, Desautel allegedly attempted to rape her, but failed to complete the act.

While she was still tied, Desautel carried the woman to his pickup and drove her to a wooded area on the Colville Indian Reservation, about eight miles north of Coulee Dam, Wash.

En route, the woman told Colville Tribal Police, Desautel continued to accuse her of cheating on him and blamed her for what he was doing to her. She said she asked Desautel to let her go, but he refused, saying he had gone too far and had to kill himself to avoid prison.

Just before reaching his destination, a ridge Desautel said was his favorite place, he reportedly untied the woman. At the ridge, according to court documents, Desautel apologized to his victim and told her he needed to write some things down.

The woman told authorities that Desautel wrote a note to his mother, made a list of people who owed him money and composed a makeshift will. Then, she said, he called his mother on a cell phone to say goodbye.

Apologizing again, Desautel put his .38-caliber pistol in his waistband, got out of the truck, gave his victim the keys and told her to leave, according to court documents. The woman told police she had driven only about 15 feet when she heard a gunshot, but it was dark and she didn’t want to return.

She continued driving and used a cell phone to call tribal police. Officers found Desautel alive with a bullet wound in the upper-left part of his chest.