Kidnap suspect is Kalispell man, 57

The Daily Inter Lake

Flathead County Sheriff Jim Dupont said a Whitefish teenager is "very lucky" after what is suspected to be a kidnapping attempt in Bigfork during the weekend.

A man identified as Charles Devlin, 57, of Kalispell is in custody in Lake County in connection with the incident.

The girl reportedly told authorities she was drinking with a friend Saturday night at Sliter Park near Bigfork. She said she awoke, mostly nude, at about 2:30 a.m. inside a van, and someone she doesn't know was driving. She has no memory of how she got there, she said.

The girl's screams reportedly prompted someone in Woods Bay to call for help. When an officer stopped the van, Devlin allegedly covered the girl inside the van and ordered her to be quiet. Instead, she screamed again for help.

She went to the hospital for an evaluation, and Devlin went to the Lake County jail.

He has been convicted in Montana of aggravated assault (1988), probation violation and bail jumping (both in 1994). He must register with the state as a violent offender.

Devlin also reportedly has a federal criminal record.

Dupont said the matter will be handled in Lake County because the girl has no memory of any criminal activity occurring in Flathead County.