Elijah Myers

PETROLIA — A 21-year-old man is accused of an unprovoked assault at a bar that left another man with a fractured shoulder.

State police arrested Elijah S. Myers, 21, of Fairview Township on Saturday in connection with an altercation Wednesday at the Oil Boom Saloon on Main Street in Petrolia.

District Judge Lewis Stoughton arraigned Myers on a felony charge of aggravated assault, a misdemeanor charge of simple assault and a summary charge of harassment. He was released later Saturday on house arrest after posting $15,000 bail. He also was ordered to have no contact with the victim.

Police said they spoke to the victim, a 57-year-old Petrolia man, after being called Thursday to Butler Memorial Hospital, where he had gone for treatment of injuries in the alleged assault.

He told troopers he was assaulted by Myers between 8 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, police said.

He recounted standing at the bar getting ready to pay his tab when the defendant “grabbed him and threw him on the ground sideways,” according to charging documents. His right shoulder was fractured in the altercation.

On Friday, police obtained a copy of the bar's surveillance video, which they said showed Myers assault the victim. Police described the altercation as “unprovoked,” and said the suspect left the bar after the incident. Myers' preliminary hearing is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 4 at Stoughton's office in Chicora.

Contacted by telephone Monday, Myers declined to comment, saying he has yet to hire an attorney.