UPDATE: WF man sentenced for 2021 incident with ex-girlfriend

MOORHEAD, M.N. (Valley News Live) - A West Fargo man will spend less than two months in county jail after a string of incidents with his teenage ex-girlfriend.

25-year-old Cole Simenson was originally charged with felony kidnapping, threats of violence and a misdemeanor count of obstructing the legal process. A plea agreement earlier this year dismissed all three of those charges. Instead, a Clay County judge Simenson handed down a stay of adjudication of misdemeanor charges of false imprisonment and domestic assault.

Court documents 911 dispatchers received a call shortly before midnight on Oct. 24, 2021 from a woman who stated her daughter texted her to call the police. Officers went to a location near Glyndon that the daughter gave her mother, but officers did not find anyone there. While the victim’s phone ‘pinged’ several locations, documents say officers still couldn’t find the victim.

Documents say dispatchers later received a text from the victim’s phone that read, ‘help.’ A track of the victim’s phone showed she may be in an area north of Moorhead.

A Clay County deputy soon arrived on scene and saw a black vehicle parked on a gravel road with both the teen victim and Simenson inside. Documents say Simenson turned on his headlights and started driving slowly towards the deputy’s squad car, but the officer was able to block him and prevent him from passing.

Documents say the teen girl was visibly upset and crying when officers spoke with her. She stated Simenson is her ex-boyfriend and said he asked her to talk with him this evening. The victim stated Simenson picked her up in West Fargo and drove to Moorhead where she stated Simenson became aggressive.

The victim told officers at some point Simenson threw her phone at her and she was able to send more texts for help which is when officers were finally able to locate her.

Court documents say during a search of Simenson’s car officers found a knife near the driver’s compartment, drug paraphernalia and marijuana wax, as well as a rope, chains, a blanket and pillow.

A Clay County judge sentenced Simenson to 60 days in jail, with credit for two days he already served.