Pleas entered in motel attack

SANDPOINT — A California man accused of attacking a couple at a motel near Priest River is entering into a plea agreement to resolve his case.

Mokthar Joseph Emilien entered Alford pleas to attempted burglary and aggravated battery.

In exchange for the pleas, charges of kidnapping and aggravated assault were dismissed and the state agreed not to pursue a persistent violator sentencing enhancement, documents filed in 1st District Court indicate.

Under the pleas, Emilien admits no wrongdoing but concedes he could be convicted if the matter were put before a jury to decide.

The charges stem from an incident at the River Country Motel west of Priest River on March 3.

A couple who resides at the motel told investigators that Emilien forced his way into their room and began wrecking up the place. He threatend to kill them and everybody else in the motel while brandishing several kitchen knives.

Emilien stabbed one knife into a door, was naming the people he planned to kill and referring to imaginary men in cloaks he believed were in the room, the affidavit said.

At one point, Emilien was unarmed, prompting the 48-year woman to stand an announce she was leaving. Emilien responded by throwing her to the ground, which fractured her leg, according to court documents. The woman’s husband, 53, fled out a back window with his cellphone and alerted authorities.

The woman said Emilien held a knife and wrapped it with a large scarf in attempt to conceal it and threw a second knife at her from a distance of about 10 feet, court documents said. However, she was not struck by the knife’s blade.

Emilien surrendered to police without incident. He warned officers’ that the men in cloaks were leaving the room.

“He was hallucinating,” the affidavit said.

Emilien, a 23-year-old from Palmdale, was apparently suffering from a drug-induced psychotic break during the alleged attacks, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Emilien faces up to 15 years in prison on the felony battery charge, although the state has agreed to recommend a five- to 10-year prison term, according to a pretrial settlement agreement.

A sentencing date is pending.