Cloquet man charged with attempted child sex assault

A Cloquet man who served time for raping and kidnapping an ex-girlfriend is now facing five felony charges for attempted sexual assault of a minor.

Tony Allen Gohl, 40, was charged last month in Carlton County Sixth District Court with first- and second-degree attempted criminal sexual conduct with a person under age 14, kidnapping or attempting to confine a person without consent, indecent exposure while restricting a person’s freedom and soliciting a child to engage in sexual conduct. He was also charged with misdemeanor fifth-degree assault.

The Cloquet police were notified of the alleged sexual assault on Oct. 21 after the girl told her mother what happened.

According to the criminal complaint, Gohl was providing care for the victim and a younger sibling at their home. He allegedly came into the bathroom and locked the door, pulling down his pants and underwear and demanding oral sex. In an interview at First Witness on Oct. 27, the victim said Gohl made sexual demands and she refused as she was crying and asking him to stop. She tried to unlock the door but he pushed her down. According to her statement, he eventually pulled up his pants and left the bathroom, later apologizing and asking her to keep it a secret.

Cloquet police arrested Gohl on Oct. 27. He allegedly resisted arrest, running away from officers. When he was caught, Gohl was “flailing his arms and legs, attempting to fight and/or get away,” according to the complaint, allegedly striking the arresting officer in the chest and wrapping his arm around the officer’s neck and leg. As a result, Gohl also faces three misdemeanor charges for obstructing the legal process, fourth-degree assault and fleeing a police officer.

These are not the first criminal sex or kidnapping charges for Gohl, who pleaded guilty at age 20 to kidnapping and criminal sexual misconduct of an ex-girlfriend in Warba, Minnesota.

In that case, Gohl admitted to following his 19-year-old ex-girlfriend, flashing his lights to get her to pull over. She tried to flee when he drove her to a gravel pit, so he shot a 12-gauge shotgun in her direction and admitted to hitting her with the barrel of the gun until she fell to the ground, according to a story written by the Mesabi Tribune at the time. He then raped her and coerced her to perform other sexual acts. Police found a bag in his car containing a knife, a crowbar, ammunition, a screwdriver and duct tape.

The Itasca County Attorney’s Office requested an 18-year sentence in that case, an upwards departure due to the aggravating factors of the attack, according to the Mesabi Tribune. Gohl fulfilled that sentence.

Gohl has also been convicted previously of motor vehicle theft, driving while intoxicated, felony domestic violence and fifth-

degree assault.

He remains in custody in the Carlton County jail on $250,000 bond. He has an omnibus hearing set for 9 a.m. Dec. 20.