WILKES-BARRE — A Plains Township man who was apprehended in South Korea on an arrest warrant charging him with sexually and physically abusing a woman in 2018 backed out of a plea agreement in Luzerne County Court.
James C. Meininger, 40, formerly of Skidmore Street, was charged by Plains Township police in December 2018, after investigating an incident that allegedly occurred inside a vehicle on Sept. 22, 2018.
Court records say Meininger was inside a vehicle being driven by a woman when they engaged in an argument. The woman told police Meininger told her to stop the vehicle and when she did, he strangled her, court records say.
Meininger allegedly punched the woman in her head, ribs and legs as she fought back.
The woman fled the vehicle and was chased by Meininger. When the woman made it back to her vehicle, Meininger returned before she was able to lock the doors, court records say.
Meininger forced the woman to a parking lot on East Mountain Boulevard where he sexually assaulted her, according to court records.
Police in court records say a surveillance camera recorded the sexual assault.
During a court proceeding before Judge Joseph F. Sklarosky Jr., state Deputy Attorney General Angela Sperrazza said a plea agreement was previously agreed upon but Meininger opted not to fulfill the agreement.
Sklarosky said he will scheduled a trial date at the conclusion of a federal case against Meininger.
Meininger was captured in South Korea in May 2020, and deported to the United States where he was taken into custody by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in Los Angeles, Calif. Meininger returned to Luzerne County in June 2020.
Meininger is facing charges of aggravated indecent assault, indecent assault, sexual assault and strangulation in Luzerne County.
In an unrelated case, Meininger in September pled guilty to a federal charge of mailing a threatening letter to General Mark A. Milley at The Pentagon in October 2021. Milley was the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff when Meininger was indicted by a federal grand jury of sending the threatening letter. Meininger has not been sentenced on the federal charge.
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