A Middletown Township man was arrested last month after Newtown Township police alleged he grabbed a woman by the neck, slammed her into a grassy hill, and took her purse.
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Newtown Township police were called to a parking lot on Swamp Road around 10 p.m. Sept. 6 after three people reported hearing a commotion near La Stalla Restaurant, according to an affidavit of probable cause.
The witnesses told police they saw a man and woman arguing loudly before the assault.
The man grabbed the woman by the neck and slammed her into a grassy hill near the restaurant. He then took her purse and fled, according to police.
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The purse contained the woman’s cellphone, wallet, keys and other personal belongings, police said.
Officers identified the man as John Francis Marziano, 37, of the Levittown section of Middletown Township.
Newtown Township police enlisted the assistance of Middletown Township police while searching for him.
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Marziano told relatives he was at a Newtown Township bar, but officers checked the establishment and did not find him, police said.
Officers later checked a Newtown Borough establishment after Marziano’s cellphone pinged in the area, but he was not there either.
A bartender told an officer that a man believed to be Marziano had been at the bar discussing relationship issues that had been difficult for him, according to police.
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Newtown Township police then used automatic license plate reader data to track Marziano’s vehicle as it headed toward Middletown Township, authorities said.
Middletown Township officers responded to Marziano’s home and found him.
Police said Marziano complied and got out of his vehicle but began resisting when officers asked him to place his hands behind his back.
Credit: Tom Sofield/NewtownPANow.com
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Two Middletown Township officers used a “reasonable amount of force” to take Marziano into custody, according to police.
Newtown Township officers then transported him to the police station without further incident, police said.
Marziano was charged with robbery, resisting arrest, receiving stolen property, disorderly conduct, harassment and simple assault. He was preliminarily arraigned and released on $100,000 bail, which was posted by a bail bondsman.
Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.