BENTONVILLE -- The attorneys for a former Bentonville School District employee want a judge to suppress their client's statement to police to prevent it from being used as evidence.
Ali Martin Matar Jr., 21, of Lowell is charged with two counts of rape, a Class Y felony, and sexual assault in the second degree, a Class B felony. Matar has pleaded not guilty to the charges. He's being held in the Benton County Jail on $250,000 bond.
At A Glance
Possible Sentences
Rape is normally punishable with a prison sentence ranging from 10 to 40 years. Ali Matar faces from 25 to 40 years or life imprisonment on rape charges if convicted because Arkansas law requires a 25-year minimum sentence for anyone convicted of raping a child 13 and younger. Sexual assault is punishable with a prison sentence ranging from five to 20 years if convicted.
Source: Staff Report
Matar was arrested May 14 in connection with raping a 5-year-old student at R.E. Baker Elementary School. He was arrested a few days later in connection with sexually abusing two 6-year-old girls at the school. Matar worked as an Adventure Club leader for the School District since October. He was fired after his arrest.
Paul Waddell and Justin Hurst, Matar's attorneys, filed motions last week in the case. One motion sought to suppress Matar's statement to police.
The suppression motion claims police began to interrogate Matar without advising him of his constitutional rights. The motion claims police elicited numerous statements without reading Matar his rights and without showing him his rights on paper or allowing him to read them himself, according to court documents.
The motion states police read Matar his rights more than an hour into the interrogation.
The motion also wants Circuit Judge Brad Karren to rule Matar's arrest was illegal and dismiss the charges against Matar.
The attorneys also filed a motion asking Karren to sever each of the charges against Matar. He would have three trials if the severance motion is granted.
The severance motion claims Matar faces accusations by three children and the allegations deal with different dates and fact patterns. The motion also claims each girl claims different types of contact and touches by Matar. The three girls have separate allegations against Matar, the motion states.
Failure to sever the charges and to have one trial would prejudice Matar and risk him having a fair trial, according to the severance motion.
The attorneys also filed a motion requesting Matar be allowed to wear plain clothes and physical restraints be removed during his jury trial.
Matar is scheduled to appear in court Friday for an omnibus hearing. A motions hearing is set for Oct. 31. Matar's jury trial is set to begin Jan. 27.
A 5-year-old girl disclosed "Mr. Ollie" inappropriately touched her when she was alone with him in the school library, according to court documents.
Matar initially told police he noticed multiple times the girl had her hand in her shorts and was scratching herself, and each time he removed her hand by placing his hand inside the girl's shorts. Matar said he may have accidentally touched the girl.
Matar later admitted the girl had her hand on her thigh and not in her shorts. Matar told police he became curious and placed his hand in the girl's clothing and touched her for one to two seconds, according to court documents.
The older girls also reported Matar inappropriately touched them while they were at school.
NW News on 09/18/2014