A man from Derry in Westmoreland County is facing charges of attempted homicide, aggravated and simple assault and reckless endangerment after a woman who lived with him discovered a trip wire at the top of the basement steps.
The Tribune-Review reports that 60-year-old William Joseph Dankesreiter, Jr. of Derry was put in jail Sunday morning after an investigation that started Saturday when the woman found the trip wire. Police said she was going to the basement to get some items out of the freezer when she tripped and stopped herself from falling down the stairs. She initially thought the wire was part of the carpeting that had come loose, but after getting scissors, she saw two eye hooks, one on each side of the doorway, securing the wire about three inches off the floor.
Dankesreiter arrived at the home as police were investigating and after he was arrested, he requested to speak with an attorney. He is now being held at Westmoreland County prison in lieu of $500,000 bail. His preliminary hearing is set for this Friday.
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