A Pennsylvania inmate is facing additional charges after being accused of making 200 phone calls to a woman set to testify against him during his trial.
Jamar L. Freshley, 32, was arraigned on an additional charge of intimidation of a witness on Thursday.
Freshley is accused of ramming a car with two young children, both under 6-years-old, inside on October 28. The woman and her kids were trapped in the car and had to be freed by first responders. The victim and Freshley are known to each other.
Freshley was being held in the Westmoreland County Jail on a $500,000 bond following the accident. He is facing charges of aggravated assault, aggravated assault of a victim younger than 6, aggravated assault by vehicle, recklessly endangering another person, along with multiple traffic violations.
Court documents reveal that the incarcerated Freshley began making phone calls to the victim two days after the crash. It continued until January 4, with him contacting the victim up to 14 times in one day. Westmoreland County Detective James Williams stated that the calls were recorded in the document.
Williams said Freshley begged the woman not to testify and apologized for ramming her car. “He said he didn’t know (the children) were in the car when he rammed them. ‘I’m in this little cell, and I need out … I’m sorry,'” Freshley said, according to Williams.
As a result, Hempfield District Judge Mark Mansour increased Freshley’s $500,000 bond to $550,000.
