Montco resident draws prison for bar assault

NORRISTOWN » An Abington man was sent to prison for assault in connection with a confrontation he had with an employee of a local bar after stealing her tips, an encounter that resulted in the woman collapsing and suffering injuries.

Santino David Civello, 31, of the 900 block of East Welsh Road, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court to 1½ to six years in a state correctional facility after he pleaded guilty to a felony charge of aggravated assault in connection with a 9:30 p.m. May 15, 2017, incident at Jerzee’s Sports Bar and Pizzaria on Mount Carmel Avenue.

Judge Steven C. Tolliver, who accepted a plea agreement in the matter, also banned Civello from the bar. Civello also must pay $7,677 in restitution to the victim.

Other charges of robbery, recklessly endangering another person and theft by unlawful taking were dismissed against Civello as part of the plea agreement.

An investigation began when Abington police responded to the sports bar in the 2600 block of Mount Carmel Avenue for a report of a medical emergency. Upon arrival, police found a female employee lying in a pool of blood behind the take-out counter, according to the criminal complaint filed by Abington Police Officer Anthony Space.

Witnesses told police the woman had what appeared to be a seizure and then fell and struck her head on a counter top before falling to the floor, according to court papers. The woman was transported to a local hospital for treatment of injuries to her jaw, nose and teeth.

After speaking with witnesses, police learned that the woman’s collapse occurred minutes after a confrontation with Civello who allegedly stole $15 from the woman’s tip jar, according to the criminal complaint. Investigators subsequently reviewed the bar’s video surveillance footage that recorded the incident.

The video footage showed Civello at the take-out counter and unscrewing the lid to the tip jar when the victim left the counter area and went to another area of the business.

“He placed his arm inside the jar and took a handful of U.S. bills, before placing the top back on,” Space alleged. “A moment later, Civello again unscrews the lid to the tip jar and takes another handful of bills.”

When the victim returned to the counter area she motioned toward the tip jar and a verbal confrontation ensued after which Civello left the bar on foot with the victim following, police alleged.

“(The victim) continued to ask Civello for her money back while in the parking lot,” alleged Space, adding Civello was “frantic and jumped into a car.”

The victim told police Civello drove the car toward her and that she had to jump out of the way, according to the arrest affidavit.

“(The victim) expressed that she feared for her life when she dove out of the way of the vehicle. She reiterated that it was the front bumper of the vehicle that would have hit her,” Space alleged.

After the confrontation on the parking lot, the victim returned to the bar and reported the incident to a manager. Minutes later, the victim “passed out” and fell forward, striking her face on a nearby stone countertop, police alleged. Witnesses described what appeared to be a seizure while the victim was on the floor.

“(The victim) believes that her loss of consciousness was a direct result of the traumatic incident occurring moments prior,” Space alleged in the arrest affidavit.