Pittsburgh man jailed after threatening, assaulting woman
Police arrested a Pittsburgh man Monday night after he threatened a woman with a kitchen knife and held her in a local hotel.
Akeem Malik Smith, 20, of Brett Street, faces charges of aggravated assault, terroristic threats, unlawful restraint and simple assault. He was arraigned Tuesday morning before District Judge Ethan Ward, who set bond at $35,000.
According to the criminal complaint, police were dispatched to the America’s Best Value Inn & Suites Hotel on West Chestnut Street in Canton Township shortly after 9:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Smith is accused of punching a woman twice in the face after she refused sex. The woman told police that Smith held a kitchen knife to her throat and threatened to kill her and her family.
He would not allow the woman to leave the hotel room for about an hour and a half, according to the complaint. She was able to make it out of the room and to the parking lot, where she entered a bystander’s vehicle for safety, police said.
When police arrived in the parking lot, Smith was standing outside of the vehicle.
Smith told police in an interview at the Washington County state police barracks that he had punched the victim because she had pulled a knife on him.