Sagaser wants to withdraw guilty pleas, seeks new lawyer

Matthew Eric Sagaser elected not to withdraw his guilty pleas at his last court appearance and was sentenced according to the original plea agreement.

Sagaser, 31, Mt. Vernon, was arrested in October and charged with 29 counts related to domestic violence, including kidnapping, strangulation and assault, as well a separate case for drug and other charges.

He was sentenced Jan. 19 to a total of 271 days in jail with credit for time served and 36 months of supervised probation with no contact with the victim. He was ordered to pay a $600 fine and $6,728 in restitution to Blue Mountain Hospital. His license was also suspended for six months.

Through negotiations with the district attorney’s office, Sagaser originally pleaded guilty to one count of possession of methamphetamine, one count of coercion, three counts of fourth-degree assault and one count of strangulation Nov. 5. Before being sentenced, Sagaser requested a new attorney and to withdraw his guilty pleas.

“Ultimately, on (Jan. 19), Mr. Sagaser withdrew his motion to withdraw his guilty pleas,” Deputy District Attorney Matt Ipson said. “… Sagaser was just sentenced per the agreement set forth in plea petitions from November 5.”

Per the agreement, all other charges were dismissed, including one count of second-degree kidnapping, four counts of coercion, six counts of fourth-degree assault, four counts of menacing, nine counts of recklessly endangering another person, one count of felon in possession of a restricted weapon, one count of criminal forfeiture and two counts of contempt of court.

The alleged abuse occurred since July against the same woman in different locations around Grant County such as Dog Creek, John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and Sagaser’s home.

He was arrested in Canyon City, after the Grant County Sheriff’s Office and John Day Police Department worked together to investigate the reported incidents.

According to the indictment, Sagaser kidnapped the woman by secretly confining her in a place where she was not likely to be found. He reportedly committed coercion by threatening the woman to not leave an area, not tell hospital staff about the nature of her injuries and not tell a third-party about the cause of her injuries.

The woman was injured by Sagaser allegedly strangling her, striking her head against concrete, head-butting, kicking and elbowing her and shooting at her with a CO2 airsoft gun from within five feet.