Kidnapping & torture testimony presented from deceased alleged victim

One of the alleged victims in the Ishpeming kidnapping and torture case died of unrelated causes before the case went to trial. But as ABC 10 senior reporter Mike Hoey explains, Jason Sadowski’s and Charles Cope’s jury heard from the woman Thursday through a recording of her testimony during the preliminary exam.

Alleged Victim #2 of Jason Sadowski and Charles Cope said at the prelim that Sadowski struck her more than 20 times, attempted to strangle her and duct-taped her to a post in the basement of his mixed martial arts studio.

Marquette County Prosecutor Matt Wiese asked her on the recording, “How were you bound or secured to the post?” Alleged Victim #2 answered, “I was tied. My hands were up so I couldn’t touch the tape. There was tape around my mouth and my head…I had it around my ankles…Everything was tied around the post, but I was having problems because I couldn’t stand or sit because I was choking if I didn’t keep my knees bent.”

She testified that Sadowski used a sword to force her and Alleged Victim #1 into the basement. Wiese asked, “At this point in time, as you did this, how did you think about the sword on your back as you were being told to go to the basement?” “That I was going to be killed; that I was dead,” Alleged Victim #2 said.

Police did not take any swords as evidence because of the large number of swords on the premises, given that it was a martial arts dojo.

Timothy Quinnell, defense attorney for Sadowski, asked, “And that sword is not part of the tabulation, either, is that correct?” Ishpeming Police Chief Dan Willey answered, “No. There were so many swords in this place, I didn’t want to take them all. I didn’t grab them because there were too many swords. I only have a small evidence room, and I don’t want to fill it up with junk.”

Willey spent most of Thursday on the witness stand. Alleged Victim #2 said that Sadowski woke up Cope, who had been sleeping in the basement, and asked him to help duct-tape both women, which she said Cope did.

Judge Jennifer Mazzuchi told the attorneys ahead of time to be prepared to give their closing arguments this afternoon but that they would be more likely to take place Friday morning.