WILMINGTON — A New Hanover County man has been found guilty of kidnapping, assault inflicting physical injury by strangulation, and habitual misdemeanor assault and sentenced to 157-201 months in custody of the N.C. Department of Adult Corrections.
Kevin Whiting was sentenced to at least 13 years.
“On December 1, 2017, a woman visiting from out of state left her downtown hotel for an early morning walk near the marina. Whiting followed her, then proceeded to beat, strangle to unconsciousness, and drag the victim to a nearby field. When the woman regained consciousness, Whiting told her that he was going to have sex with her. She used her quick thinking to dissuade the defendant from furthering his assault on her. Another female on her way to work witnessed the bloodied victim and the defendant near the marina and called 911 on her behalf. The victim finally convinced her assailant to let her walk back to the hotel where she staying downtown,” according to a press release from District Attorney Ben David.
When she returned to her hotel, the Wilmington Police Department was contacted and responded to the incident.
“A uniformed officer started to question individuals along the Riverwalk, and located a man at the pavilion at Market and Water Streets with a mark on his hand. Using the description provided by the victim, the officer connected Whiting to the offense, and his picture was included in a photo lineup. The victim correctly identified Whiting as the assailant,” according to the release.
“In the weeks preceding this assault, several women had reported to law enforcement that the defendant had approached them downtown and made them feel scared and uncomfortable. The jurors heard about one such incident when Whiting masturbated while watching a woman reading in Bijou Park. Whiting has prior convictions including, but not limited to, two counts of communicating threats, two simple assaults, indecent exposure, three assaults on a female, domestic violence protective order violation, and assault with a deadly weapon. Whiting has a pending secret peeping case. The next court date on that is July 16, 2019,” the release concluded.
