Police: 10-Inch Knife Used in Domestic Assault

After having a “verbal dispute” with his girlfriend Sunday afternoon, a Bethlehem man went into a bedroom and locked the door behind him.

He and the woman had been living in this room – on the third floor of a SouthSide residence – for the past six months.

What happened next led to charges against the woman, Yania Rivera-Ortiz, 28, of the 400 block of Pierce Street.

The man told police he was packing his things in the Pierce Street room when Rivera-Ortiz managed to open the door. She was holding a 10-inch-long knife.

He said he thought she was going to stab him, so he grabbed the knife with his left hand. He suffered a small but deep cut to his left ring finger when she pulled the knife through his hand.

He said Rivera-Ortiz was angry, so he restrained her until others removed the knife. He said the woman then struck him several times in the head and body.

Police said Rivera-Ortiz, who had retrieved the knife from the first-floor kitchen, had no visible injuries but some of the boyfriend’s blood was on her shirt.

According to a criminal complaint filed by city Officer Matthew Laxton, police also spoke to a woman who said she witnessed the fight between Rivera-Ortiz and her boyfriend.

The woman said Rivera-Ortiz was holding a knife and the boyfriend was attempting to restrain her. She said Rivera-Ortiz would not let go of the knife, which had to be forcibly removed from her.

Laxton spoke to the boyfriend with the assistance of city Officer William Rodriguez.

Rivera-Ortiz was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon – a level-two felony – and simple assault.

She was arraigned around 9pm – the incident occurred shortly before 4pm – by on-duty District Judge Jackie Taschner of Palmer Township and committed to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $25,000 bail.