Credit: Falls Township police
Falls Township police recovered five firearms and boxes of ammunition from a home during an assault investigation, according to court papers.
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The investigation started after Falls Township police were dispatched around 12:50 p.m. on Thursday, February 2 to Jefferson Bucks Hospital in the township for a report of a person who was assaulted. They found a woman who claimed she was assaulted by her boyfriend at a home on Primrose Lane in Levittown, court papers stated.
The woman, while lying in a hospital bed in the emergency room, told an officer that she and her boyfriend – identified as Edward J. Cieslinski, 58, of Levittown – had gotten into a fight a few hours earlier because her pitbull, Diesel, had gone to the bathroom in the home.
According to the authorities, Cieslinski lifted a rubber mallet over the woman’s head during the fight regarding the dog’s accident.
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“Are you going to hit me?” the woman reportedly asked.
The woman told an investigator Cleslinski then put the mallet down, grabbed her from behind, put his arm across her neck, applied pressure, and started to choke her. She claimed she was having trouble breathing during the alleged assault.
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The woman alleged to police that Cieslinski eventually let her go and threw her into a half-wall, causing it to “separate.”
After being released, the woman dropped to the ground and into the dog’s bowl, spilling food all over the place, she told police.
The women then reportedly went to the bathroom, got a shower, took her pocketbook, and left the residence.
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Outside the home, Cieslinski yelled at her and she threw a bag of potting soil at him, missing him, according to her account to police.
The woman told police Cieslinski took her pocketbook and began hitting her five or six times with it as she was curled up in a fetal position. She was reportedly struck on the back and back of her head.
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The woman said Cieslinski threatened to shoot her dog, according to police.
The woman suffered minor injuries, police said.
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Due to a prior arrest, Cieslinski is prohibited from owning firearms, but his girlfriend said he had multiple firearms in his home, police said.
The woman showed the detectives photographs of the guns in the house, police said.
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Officials conducted a criminal history check on Cieslinski, who they found to have a 2004 narcotics arrest and conviction, according to court papers.
The weapons and ammunition were recovered during a search warrant execution.
Cieslinski was charged with strangulation, terroristic threats with intent to terrorize another, simple assault, and harassment. He was also charged with possession of a firearm while prohibited. Cieslinski was preliminarily arraigned and held on 10 percent of $75,000 bail, which was later reduced to 10 percent of $25,000.
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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.
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