AUBURN — A Livermore Falls man was sentenced Friday to spend 18 months behind bars after he admitted to charges of attacking and threatening his neighbor with a knife.

Robert Valles, 49, of 118 Main St. pleaded guilty to felony domestic violence criminal threatening plus three misdemeanor charges in an April 23, 2014, attack on a woman who told police she feared for her life.

A neighbor told police he heard a woman calling for help in Valles’ apartment. When police arrived, the woman told the responding officer, “Thank God you’re here. I thought he was going to kill me!”

Assistant District Attorney Lisa Bogue said in Androscoggin County Superior Court on Friday that Valles’ son would have corroborated the woman’s story and would have testified that his father had told him to help “sharpen knives” to harm the victim.

Had the case gone to trial, a local police officer would have testified that Valles admitted he held the victim down on the bathroom floor and threatened her with a knife.

Following a plea agreement, Valles was sentenced to five years in prison, with all but 18 months suspended. He has served about half of that time at Androscoggin County Jail.

He also pleaded guilty to domestic violence assault, endangering the welfare of a child and violation of condition of release. He was sentenced to a total of 16 months on those misdemeanors, to run at the same time as his sentence on the domestic violence criminal threatening charge.

He will be on probation for three years after his release, during which time he is barred from having contact with the victim. He also must refrain from alcohol and illegal drug use and not have dangerous weapons while on probation.

A charge of kidnapping was dismissed, along with charges of domestic violence assault, criminal restraint and violation of condition of release.

cwilliams@sunjournal.com