An off-duty New Kensington police officer is accused of beating up his girlfriend after drinking at a Pittsburgh bar over the weekend, according to a criminal complaint.

The woman told police she had been navigating their route home with a GPS when the incident happened.

Joseph Martino II, 32, of Lower Burrell, was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol when a witness saw him strike his girlfriend in the face more than 20 times by UPMC Children’s Hospital, according to the complaint.

Martino has been charged with unlawful restraint and simple assault in connection to the incident, which occurred shortly after 1:45 a.m. Saturday in the 4400 block of Penn Avenue.

New Kensington police Chief Bob Deringer said the department is aware of the incident, and is investigating.

Pittsburgh police said they were called to the area after a witness reported that a man was assaulting a woman inside an SUV, according to the complaint.

The witness said the woman had run into the emergency room of UPMC Children’s Hospital, and the man was chasing her. By the time officers got to the emergency room, the man had left the scene and the woman was with UPMC police, according to the complaint.

Police said the woman was visibly shaken, crying, had no shoes, and her hair was disheveled and the straps to her dress were broken. She also had visible injuries to the left side of her face including swelling, redness and bruising.

The woman said she and Martino, who she identified as her intimate partner, had attended a private party at a Squirrel Hill bar for her birthday. She told police Martino was extremely intoxicated when they left, so she offered to drive home, but Martino refused and proceeded to drive, the complaint said.

The woman said at some point during the drive, Martino became verbally aggressive and irritated as she attempted to navigate the GPS. She told police she didn’t feel safe in the SUV because of the behavior, so she tried to get out.

The woman told police at that time, Martino grabbed her by the hair and pulled her back into the SUV, where he proceeded to hit her in the face repeatedly with a closed fist, the complaint said.

The woman managed to get out of the SUV, but Martino followed and hit her head off the side of the vehicle, the complaint said. When the woman realized she was by Children’s, she ran toward the emergency room to get help. Martino chased the woman into the lobby before going back to the SUV, the complaint said.

The woman was seen by hospital staff after complaining of dizziness and disorientation, according to the complaint.

Police spoke with a witness on scene, who confirmed the woman’s account. The witness told police that she saw a man strike a woman more than 20 times in the face while the two were in a white SUV. The witness also said the man hit the woman off the side of the car as she yelled for help and chased her into the hospital lobby.

The witness was able to provide police with the SUV’s license plate number, which was found a short time later in a parking lot in the 2700 block of Penn Avenue, police said. The SUV was unoccupied with the keys inside.

Martino is free on non-monetary bond. A preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 22.

Deringer said Martino was not on duty when the incident occurred, and he is not working as the department investigates the matter.

“As this is a personnel matter, we will have no further comment at this time,” Deringer said Sunday.

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