Gainesville man faces rape charge

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A Gainesville man, already facing felony charges in Baxter County, is now accused in an alleged sexual assault in Ozark County. According to the Ozark County Times, 28-year-old Michael Cox was scheduled to be arraigned last week on charges of rape, domestic assault and burglary.

The incident was reported to have occurred May 13th at a mobile home park in the Gainesville area. The probable cause affidavit states a woman who shares a child with Cox and was in a domestic relationship with him told officers he entered her home uninvited and would not leave despite her repeated requests. She alleges she went to sleep that night and woke up to Cox having sexual contact with her without her consent. The woman claims Cox blocked her from leaving the next morning, pushed her onto the bed next to their child and began choking her with his hands. She said she couldn’t breath and was close to losing conciousness when he stopped. After he let her leave, she ran to the neighbor’s residence and called the Ozark County Sheriff’s Department.

Cox reportedly gave officers during an interview a story similar to the victim’s. He said he went to the woman’s residence despite being ordered not to after a confrontation with Ozark County deputies the previous day. He knew the woman wanted him to leave, but he said he wanted to see their child. He then admitted to having sex with the woman, and the affidavit doesn’t state if Cox believed it was a consensual act. Cox admitted to blocking her from leaving the next morning. He said he knew he shouldn’t have tried to stop her, but he was angry because he believed she had been intimate with someone else while he was recently incarcerated for assaulting her. Cox then told officers he pushed the victim onto the bed and tried to choke her out, but he stopped when he noticed their child watching. He fled out the back door when a deputy arrived.

Cox was released from the Baxter County Detention Center with a no contact order May 11th after being arrested for domestic battery and theft of a vehicle.

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