FAYETTEVILLE — An expected two-day trial enters a third day today after jurors heard Wednesday conflicting testimony from a Marshallese man accused of raping a woman from Huntsville.
Arjel Gold of Springdale mostly spoke through an interpreter and faces two felony counts of rape and one count of robbery after an incident in the early morning of Oct. 9 on Adrian Avenue. Gold was arrested two days later.
Jurors heard a woman say she couldn’t identify her rapist or remember some statements she made to investigators, and Gold, 32, who struggled to understand and answer questions from defense attorneys and prosecutors.
They heard from nine other witnesses Wednesday. Jurors will hear closing arguments today by attorneys before deliberating.
The 32-year-old woman told the jury the incident was rape because she felt the unwanted sexual acts after a physical confrontation, which included injuries to her face, neck, arms and legs. However, she couldn’t remember details such as the individual’s face or the length of the incident that happened between two duplex homes.
She told the jury the incident lasted 10 to 15 minutes. A nurse who attended to her and collected evidence said the woman said it lasted 25 to 30 minutes.
The woman said she kept falling asleep while questioned by the nurse who examined her for several hours after the incident. The woman had been awake the entire night and she said she felt drowsy after taking medication given to her by the nurse.
“Do you want to know the honest-to-God truth? This happened, it feels like, forever ago,” the woman said. “I can’t be certain. I talked to so many different people, so many different cops.”
The woman left a birthday party after an argument at a home on nearby Amhurst Circle. She walked to the intersection of Butterfield Coach Road and Adrian Avenue, where she said she approached a group of men, including Gold, looking for a ride home.
The jurors heard a sexual incident occurred, whether forced or consensual, as the pair walked to a house to retrieve a vehicle. Gold said the house was owned by his sister.
Evidence, such as chewing tobacco, lighter, coins and a bloody T-shirt, was confirmed to be owned by either the Gold or the woman, the jury heard.
Darnell Propps, a Springdale detective, said the evidence was sent for analysis, but crime lab technicians couldn’t link anything because of a lack of fingerprints or enough fluids on the items. The technicians couldn’t determine the age of the blood on the shirt.
Propps told the jury about Gold’s injured nose, which he said was scratched by the woman during the confrontation. However, the prosecution also called Gold’s work supervisor who testified seeing the injured nose on the day before the incident.
Gold said he remembered the woman repeatedly asked if he was married. He said the sex was consensual and said some of the bruising was caused by sucking her neck and thighs. However, he couldn’t explain how she was injured in other areas.
He testified he knew she wanted him and he wanted her.
“She said, ‘Anything you want to do to me, go for it because you’re helping me out,’” Gold said through an interpreter.