Additionally, the judge said, defense attorneys failed to prove their assertion that Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agents intimidated witnesses into cooperating with the investigation. “The court finds there were no deliberate intrusions on privileged attorney-client communications,” Friday wrote in a 21-page order. “Assuming that there was an intrusion, the court would still deny defendants’ motion to dismiss because defendants’ Sixth Amendment right to counsel was not violated.”
The ruling, in the cases of Debelak and Eric Anthony Newman, came five months after a contentious evidentiary hearing in which attorneys asserted that agents eavesdropped on private communications and three witnesses claimed they were threatened with prosecution if they did not comply with orders. The cases stem from allegations that a woman was sexually assaulted and a man was abducted and beaten at the Hells Angels’ downtown Eveleth clubhouse.
Authorities reported that the man escaped from the group on crutches on November 28, 2023, and ran to the safety of police, expressing fear that members could find him. Investigators said they went on to learn that both victims were visiting an Eveleth residence November 27 when club members arrived. It was reported that the woman was raped there by Debelak and Newman.
The man, meanwhile, was allegedly taken to the clubhouse in a van driven by Jake Douglas Novaczyk. He said he continued to be beaten by the chapter president, Jerand Paul French, as other members recorded video. Authorities have released few details about the alleged motive or relationships between parties, other than to say that French was allegedly upset about the man’s association with the woman.
