Homeower accused of pointing loaded rifle at two troopers held for court
SAXONBURG — A state police officer offered dramatic testimony about staring down the barrel of a loaded rifle while answering a burglar alarm at a house in Winfield Township.
“I was able to see the AR (15) pointed right at me,” Trooper Robert Gambone recounted today at a preliminary hearing for 53-year-old Richard W. Gniewkowski.
The trooper drew his own gun and ran for cover before Gniewkowski, who also aimed the semi-automatic rifle at Gambone's partner, eventually surrendered during the brief standoff April 9 at his home on Stargrille Road.
A pair of defense attorneys, however, argued that their client that night did not know who was at the house in a secluded, wooded area with no outside lighting.
They also noted that no shots were fired and no one was hurt.
District Judge Sue Haggerty ordered Gniewkowski to stand trial on two counts each of aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, simple assault and disorderly conduct.
