CHICORA — A Summit Township man testified Tuesday about opening his front door last month and suddenly having four intruders in his house.

Some had guns and at least one had a knife. Two wore full masks and one had a partial mask.

The 23-year-old victim recognized Daniel N. Cervone, 24, of Butler Township as the man wearing a partial mask and pointing a gun at his head.

“I've know him from around the neighborhood for at least 10 years,” Christian Manny testified at Cervone's preliminary hearing at the office of District Judge Lewis Stoughton in Chicora.

Manny recounted the harrowing night that he and his family endured about 10 p.m. Feb. 11, in their mobile home on Hyvue Lane.

Stoughton would ultimately order Cervone held for trial on charges of robbery, trespass and theft in the alleged home invasion.

No one else has been arrested or charged, police said, because Cervone's suspected accomplices have not been identified.

Following the hearing, Trooper Brian Knirnschild, the investigating officer, said the case remains open.

Manny related that he was at home watching television with his fiancée, and his 4-year-old son was asleep on the couch. Another child, a 3-month old boy, was also sleeping in the living room.

He heard a noise from outside and then a knock at the door. Twice, he asked, “Who is it?”

When he opened the door, he said he saw Cervone, holding a gun. He described it as “chrome” and “big.”

Manny told prosecutor Russ Karl, a county assistant district attorney, that he took a swing at the defendant but apparently didn't connect.

Before he knew it, he had a gun at his head and a knife at his throat.

He remembered seeing a second, “heavy set” man come through the door behind Cervone. He did not recognize the man, who wore no mask.

That man, Manny said, had his gun pointed at his 21-year-old fiancée.

At some point, Manny testified, he “kind of blacked out” — possibly from a combination of anger and fear.

“I wasn't calm,” he told Cervone's attorney, public defender Ryan Helsel, “There were two guys with guns and my family was behind me.”

He recovered seconds later and found himself on the floor, on his stomach. Cervone had the gun at his head, he said, and he was watching the others rummage through his house.

According to court documents, “One of the (intruders) pointed his handgun at the two juvenile children who were asleep in the living room area.”

Manny could also hear his fiancée screaming, “Don't hurt my kids.”

The ordeal didn't last long and the invaders eventually ran out, but not before taking a pack of cigarettes, a cell phone and $60 that was on the counter in the house.

They also searched Manny for money.

“They ran my pockets,” he said, “but I had nothing but my cell phone.” They took that, too, telling the victim they did not want him to call police.

The coast clear, he went to a neighbor's house to call for help.

During his cross-examination, Helsel asked Manny if he owed Cervone money. The victim said he did not.

Helsel also raised a question about “drug sales” but Karl objected, arguing the inquiry was beyond the scope of his direct examination. Stoughton agreed.

When the defendant's attorney asked the victim why someone would commit such a crime against him, he could offer no explanation.

But Manny was certain about one thing in particular that night: Cervone was there.

“I can say 100 percent,” he told Helsel, “it was him.”

Police on Feb. 12 arrested Cervone on Center Avenue in Butler. He remains in Butler County Prison on $500,000 bail.

Butler County Court records showed that the defendant has had other brushes with the law. His criminal record includes two felonies — both for burglary.

His first felony conviction came when he was 18 years old. He was sentenced to 1 to 2 years in prison followed by 3 years on probation.