LIBERTY BOROUGH, Pa. — A Liberty Borough man is facing a long list of charges after police say he assaulted a woman, crashed a vehicle and hit an officer with handcuffs.
The Allegheny County Police Department announced charges against Matthew Bertges, 28, for an incident that happened on April 12.
Police said the incident began when officers were called to a domestic dispute at a house on the 3300 block of Liberty Way in Liberty Borough.
According to court documents, a woman told police that Bertges punched and choked her before fleeing in a 2016 Subaru Legacy.
Investigators said the Subaru was later found on the 80 block of Calhoun Road. It crashed into two vehicles outside of a home. A police report said the vehicles were engulfed in flames at the time of the crash.
Police said officers found Bertges on foot nearby a short time later. When they tried to take him into custody, they said he grabbed at an officer’s gun and an altercation broke out. During that altercation, police said Bertges used a handcuff that was looped around his fist as an impromptu weapon and hit an officer with it. A police officer reportedly hit Bertges with a closed fist several times during this fight. A Taser was also deployed and hit Bertges with no effect, police say.
Eventually, officers were able to take Bertges into custody. He was flown to a hospital. Police said he had opiates, marijuana and alcohol in his system at the time of his arrest.
Bertges faces 15 charges, including aggravated assault, disarming a law enforcement officer, robbery, strangulation and criminal mischief. He is being held at the Allegheny County Jail without bail.
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