Oakmont man accused of biting, choking, trying to drown woman
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Police accused an Oakmont man of biting, choking and trying to drown a woman in a kitchen sink.
Oakmont police charged Dylan Dempsey, 24, of the 700 block of Allegheny Avenue with felony strangulation, terroristic threats, two misdemeanor counts of simple assault and two misdemeanor counts of possessing marijuana in connection with the incident Thursday.
Officers said they were dispatched to an apartment in the 700 block of Allegheny Avenue after a female caller said she was in an argument with Dempsey that escalated into him “half-strangulating her and running off.”
Police met the woman at a sidewalk outside the residence. She told police Dempsey ran off “that way,” pointing south on Allegheny Avenue, in the direction of his workplace.
Officers searched the immediate area of the apartment, police said. While speaking with the woman, police said they noticed bruising on her. She pointed to her left hand and said Dempsey bit her, and police wrote in arrest papers that the outer, fleshy part of her palm was red and swollen with teeth marks. Police said they photographed the injuries.
The woman told police Dempsey said he was going to kill her and grabbed her by the throat, officers said. She was able to escape and ran outside with Dempsey chasing her, but, once they got outside, a passerby scared Dempsey and he ran away. The woman asked the passerby to use his phone to call 911 because her phone was locked inside the apartment, police said.
The woman’s grandmother arrived on the scene and agreed to take the woman to the police department later that night to give a statement, while officers searched for Dempsey, authorities said. Police said they saw a man believed to be Dempsey in the West Shore parking lot. He confirmed who he was, and officers took him into custody.
Officers said they drove Dempsey to the Oakmont Police Station and searched his backpack. Police seized about 4 ounces of suspected marijuana, a silicone pipe and a debit card belonging to the victim, the complaint said.
The woman met with police at the station and gave a written statement, which includes her saying Dempsey bit, choked and threw stuff at her, tried to drown her in the kitchen sink, and told her he would kill her, the complaint said.
A preliminary hearing for Dempsey has not yet been set.