Man pleads not guilty to charges stemming from alleged attack on ex-girlfriend
DERRICK PERKINS | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 days, 6 hours AGO
Mathius Henry Hodges. (Photo courtesy the Flathead County Sheriff's Office)
NEWS EDITOR Derrick Perkins serves as News Editor at the Daily Inter Lake. He oversees daily news coverage and works closely with reporters to plan, edit and publish stories across print and digital platforms. Perkins helps coordinate coverage of local government, public safety, business and community developments throughout Northwest Montana. He works with the reporting staff to strengthen journalism while maintaining consistent daily coverage. His role helps ensure the newsroom delivers timely, accurate reporting that readers rely on. IMPACT: Derrick’s work keeps readers informed about the decisions and events shaping their communities every day. | March 27, 2026 12:00 AM
A man accused of strangling, biting and holding his ex-girlfriend at knifepoint during a fight last month has pleaded not guilty to multiple felonies in Flathead County District Court.
Prosecutors charged Mathius Henry Hodges, 22, with aggravated assault and assault with a weapon following the alleged Feb. 10 attack. Hodges, who remains in county jail with bail set at $80,000, was arraigned before Judge Amy Eddy on Feb. 19.
Eddy set an omnibus hearing in the case for May 20 and a pretrial conference to follow on July 1.
Authorities began investigating Hodges after a passing motorist found his distraught ex-girlfriend walking with an infant near Montana 35 about 8:20 a.m., Feb. 10, according to court documents. Flathead County Sheriff's Office deputies spoke with the woman, who told them she had left her home with one of her children after the alleged attack.
She said Hodges had gone through her phone while she slept in her South Cedar Drive home and saw her communications with other men, according to court documents. Enraged, he allegedly choked her and then held a knife to her. Then he bit her on the arm, according to court documents.
The woman told deputies she was forced to agree that they would remain a couple. She left once she felt he had calmed down, court documents said.
During a second telling of attack, the woman recalled Hodges cursing at her and threatening to kill her before blocking the door and barring her from leaving the home. Armed with a kitchen knife, Hodges told her that "she was his, that his is crazy and that if he can't have her no one can," court documents said.
Following Hodges' arrest, deputies searched the home and retrieved the knife he allegedly threatened her with, according to court documents. They also recovered the victim's phone, which Hodges allegedly broke and hid during the fight.
Felony aggravated assault and assault with a weapon are punishable by up to 20 years behind bars and a $50,000 fine.
News Editor Derrick Perkins can be reached at 406-758-4430 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.
ARTICLES BY DERRICK PERKINS
Motorist charged for allegedly drunken Kalispell wreck that left passenger injured
Prosecutors brought Toly Pavlovich Abramchuk up on a felony charge of criminal endangerment and a misdemeanor count of aggravated driving under the influence, first offense, following the March 15 rollover at a shopping plaza.
Man pleads not guilty to charges stemming from alleged attack on ex-girlfriend
Prosecutors charged Mathius Henry Hodges, 22, with aggravated assault and assault with a weapon following the alleged Feb. 10 attack.
Woman gets deferred sentence for breaking into boyfriend’s lover’s home
Madison Degele, 19, of Kalispell, pleaded not guilty to felony aggravated burglary and misdemeanor criminal mischief at her July 31 arraignment before Judge Amy Eddy, but reached a deal with prosecutors by December.