CLEVELAND, OH — A man accused of having unlawful sexual conduct with five underage girls and fatally stabbing another teenager pleaded not guilty in court Monday, telling a judge he is the victim of lies, even as two of his accusers revealed new details and said they feared for their lives.
See scenes from the courtroom:
Devin Thompson, 29, appeared in court from jail via video, listening as two of the teens he's accused of having unlawful sexual conduct with confronted the man investigators call a sexually violent predator.
"I want to be able to live my life without being afraid of being followed, threatened, harassed or..." one accuser said as she broke down in tears.
Thompson pleaded not guilty to 20 counts, including rape, kidnapping and unlawful sexual conduct with a minor.
"I told him I did not want to have sex with him but he did not respect my decision, put a gun to my head and forced me to have sex with him," she said.
He is also charged with aggravated murder in connection with the deadly stabbing that killed 16-year-old Mitanna Penn inside an apartment on Cleveland's near west side.
Police have not revealed a motive in that attack. But in court, a teen investigators say was one of Thompson's victims said she is pregnant with Penn's baby.
"October 13, you ran into my house, murdered my baby's father, raped me and had a knife to me," she said.
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Court records show Thompson was already on probation in Lake County after pleading guilty to menacing by stalking and telecommunications harassment there. Following his latest charges, he is now accused of violating that probation.
But for now, that will have to wait as his cases move through Cuyahoga County courts.
"Mr. Thompson demonstrated a clear pattern of predatory behavior, repeated contact with the victims despite law enforcement intervention and escalating violence over time," Det.Redmond Dyer of the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Department said.
Thompson, who was repeatedly advised by his attorney not to speak, told a judge the accusations were not true.
"The fabricated lies that are going on right now, is crazy," Thompson said.
Already sitting in jail on a $1 million bond on the murder case, a judge set Thompson's bond at $200,000 cash on the other charges, ordered him placed on house arrest if he is released, and ordered that he not contact any of his accusers.
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