Ague arraigned on multiple assault charges

Timothy William Ague, 60, pleaded not guilty charges of sexual assault and assault on a peace officer in Lincoln County District Court on June 21.

A Libby resident, Ague was arrested in May following a lengthy investigation into his alleged years long molestation of an underage relative. The victim’s father approached law enforcement in July after she revealed the abuse to a therapist, according to court documents.

The victim later sat down with investigators and detailed sexual abuse going back as far as she could remember, court documents said. The molestation, which involved rubbing her breasts and genitalia over her clothes, continued until she entered the sixth grade, court documents said.

In one particular instance, she remembered waking up to him holding her hand to his genitalia, according to court documents. She told him to stop and began crying before leaving the bedroom where she came across Ague’s wife. She recalled telling her about the incident, court documents said.

The victim kept quiet about the molestation out of fear of upsetting her family, wrote Detective Duane Rhodes in an affidavit.

In a separate interview with investigators, Ague denied the allegations and expressed surprise that the victim had made them, according to the affidavit.

“He thought he had a good relationship with her,” Rhodes wrote. “This is the first time he is hearing this; he had no explanation for her disclosure.”

But his wife had a different reaction, according to Rhodes. After initially denying knowing anything about the allegations, her stance changed as the detective recounted the bedroom incident, court documents said.

She told Rhodes she remembered the child awakening her and telling her that Ague wanted to expose himself. Afterward, she confronted her husband, who was heavily intoxicated at the time, according to court documents. He expressed remorse in the morning, she recounted to Rhodes, and she told the victim’s mother not to leave him around children unsupervised.

The victim’s mother did not remember Ague’s wife ever mentioning that he should not be left alone with children, court documents said.

Toward the end of the interview, Ague’s wife allegedly told Rhodes that he had sexually abused another relative. That case had gone unreported, according to court documents.

Authorities arrested Ague on May 25 and brought him to the Lincoln County Detention Center. On May 28, Ague allegedly tried to push past a detention center officer in an attempt to exit the facility’s rec room. When the officer shoved him back inside, Ague allegedly took a swing.

He hit the officer on the right side of his face with a closed fist, court documents said. Detention center personnel got him into a restraint chair, but not before Ague allegedly scratched the officer’s arm and ripped his uniform.

Assaulting a peace officer carries a maximum punishment of 10 years with the Montana State Prison and a fine of up to $50,000. Sexual assault is punishable by up to 100 years behind bars and a fine of $50,000. The minimum for sexual assault is four years imprisonment.

Ague is next in court for an omnibus hearing on Aug. 23 with a pretrial conference to follow on Oct. 18. Were the case to go to trial it would begin Nov. 16.