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Police: Connellsville man beat, held underage girlfriend against her will

CONNELLSVILLE, Pa. — Police have charged a 26-year-old man accused of holding his girlfriend against her will at his Connellsville apartment on Thursday.

Police said they received a call from a woman who said her friend had just escaped Chad Echard’s apartment along Gibson Terrace.

The victim, a 17-year-old girl, told police Echard struck and beat her, keeping her in the apartment from 2 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., when she was able to run away.

Neighbors told police they heard a woman screaming and saw Echard assault and threaten to kill her if she contacted police.

Police said Echard and the victim had been in a relationship for the past three years and have a child together.

Echard was taken into custody. He is charged with unlawful restraint, statutory sexual assault and other charges. He’s being held in the Fayette County Jail on $15,000 bond.