Overview
- Gene Arnold McLenithan was arrested by the FBI and appeared in federal court Thursday, May 28, where a magistrate ordered him held without bail.
- Prosecutors say McLenithan cut open a tent on July 4, 2024, bound and blindfolded two women and threatened sexual assault while claiming to have a bag of knives.
- The U.S. Attorney’s Office charged him with kidnapping and attempted abusive sexual contact, crimes that carry a statutory maximum of life for kidnapping and up to 10 years for attempted abusive sexual contact.
- McLenithan was previously convicted in 2000 of sodomy and burglary for a 1999 attack in Otis, Oregon, a record that prosecutors cited in court filings.
- Key court documents are sealed and authorities have asked the public to contact the FBI with tips or possible additional victims as investigators continue to develop the case.