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Elijah Richard Jennings, 25, originally from Harrisburg, most recently living in Maryland, was arrested on a warrant issued by Lower Allen Township police in connection with the assault on Monday, January 23, according to an updated release.
The Lower Allen Township police were called for a welfare check on a woman who was crying in the bathroom at the Sheetz located at 1508 Cedar Cliff Drive in Camp Hill on Nov. 12, 2022, around 8:22 p.m., according to the release by the department.
Police soon learned that the woman and Jennings had been traveling together from Harrisburg to Maryland when "an argument broke out and Elijah 'backhanded' her in the face. Elijah also tried taking her phone and slammed her head against the passenger side window at one point. She was able to convince Elijah to stop at Sheetz for her to use the restroom," the police detail in the release.
She ran from the parking lot into the Sheetz's woman's room and entered the handicapped bathroom stall but Jennings stormed after her, and "kicked open the door, breaking the locking mechanism in the process," the police stated in the release.
Then he "grabbed her by the throat with both hands, choking her to the point of difficulty breathing, while also telling her that he wanted to kill her," the police say.
At this point, a customer and a store employee could hear him telling him to "get out" so one of them came in and confronted Jennings, at which point he fled, according to the release.
The woman "had redness and swelling beside and under her left eye. She was extremely anxious and visibly shaken up," the police say.
Jenning was previously arrested for allegedly causing a two-vehicle accident while driving under the influence with a minor in his car in Harrisburg in 2019, area police stated in a release at the time. He has court dockets dating back to 2016 with charges ranging from traffic issues to marijuana use, but the majority of these charges have since been withdrawn, at least until 2022. He currently has two other active cases in the Keystone state including a felon charge for Manufacture, Delivery, or Possession With Intent to Manufacture or Deliver Drugs in March and a felony for Firearms Not To Be Carried Without a License in January, court records show.
For this incident at Sheetz, he's been charged with a felony for Strangulation - Applying Pressure to Throat or Neck, three misdemeanors for Unlawful Restraint/ Serious Bodily Injury, Terroristic Threats With the Intent To Terrorize Another, Simple Assault, as well as two summary charges for Criminal Mischief - Damage Property, and Harassment - Subject Other to Physical Contact, according to his latest court docket.
Details about his arrest or where he was found were not released.
He's been held in the Cumberland County Prison on $10,000 in bail and his preliminary hearing has been set before Magisterial District Judge Christopher Delozier on Feb. 2, 2023, at 1 p.m., according to his updated court docket.
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