(KNSI) – A St. Cloud man is on trial after allegedly holding a woman against her will for days and sexually assaulting her.
Stearns County Jail
A Stearns County jury started hearing the case against the 55-year-old on Monday. Marquell Steven Goree has been charged with two counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct and one count of kidnapping. The trial is scheduled to last all week.
The victim, identified in police reports as CRL, told officers she was violated for five days in December 2025. She reported the assault to police on January 30th, 2026. She told investigators she had agreed to clean Goree’s apartment in the 600 block of 6th Street South. She had done the service before.
According to the criminal complaint, once there, Goree began making unwanted advances and told her to remove her clothes. When she refused and attempted to leave, Goree allegedly pulled out an 8-inch switchblade knife, held it to her face, grabbed her by the throat, and told her she could not leave.
CRL told police she feared for her life and was sexually assaulted multiple times over the course of her captivity. She said Goree took her clothes, made her wear a blue bathrobe, and escorted her to and from the bathroom. The woman reported that Goree threatened to kill her and kept knives near him at all times.
The victim said she was eventually allowed to leave after telling Goree she had a probation appointment she needed to attend.
During a statement to police, Goree admitted CRL had been at his home but denied any sexual contact with the woman.
Court records also show a prior complaint involving Goree in which his roommate reported that he frequently brought unwanted guests to the apartment from Lincoln Center and Place of Hope, two homeless shelters in St. Cloud.
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