CLEARFIELD – A Curwensville man accused of assaulting a 90-year-old woman waived his right to a preliminary hearing on intimidating the victim charges on Wednesday.
Robert J. Cowder, 55, was also charged with two counts of aggravated assault, simple assault and harassment in relation to an incident on June 21 in Bradford Township. Last week, he waived his right to a hearing on those charges, sending the case on to the court of common pleas.
According to the affidavit of probable cause in the assault case, police were called to the scene of the crime by the victim’s granddaughters who discovered she had been severely beaten, leaving bruises on her face, neck and upper chest area.
These witnesses said the victim identified Cowder as the assailant. They told police Cowder was visiting when he became angry about tools missing from the garage.
The grandmother stated that Cowder came into the home and allegedly lifted the victim out of a chair, by her hair. She recounted that he then “squeezed her body and threw her on the floor” before striking her several times in the face, neck and chest area.
But, when police asked the victim to explain what happened, she said she fell and wouldn’t go into any further detail.
As the officers were leaving, they reportedly heard the victim telling her granddaughters “don’t tell them anything.” The girls asked why she was lying about falling. As the troopers listened, the victim again recalled how Cowder had lifted her up, dropped her and beat her up.
The criminal complaint in the intimidation case details how the investigation continued after one of the granddaughters reported to officials that Cowder was talking to the victim and telling her to lie at his preliminary hearing.
A trooper reviewed Cowder’s outgoing calls from the county jail and discovered Cowder asked someone to go to the victim’s residence. Once there, this person called Cowder at the jail and handed the phone to the victim.
Cowder allegedly told the victim to go to the preliminary hearing on July 2 and tell the judge that she had fallen down the stairs. The victim responded that she could barely walk, adding that she had done her best not to call the cops.
Cowder stated that she had to do this or “I’m going to prison for a very long time,” it says in the affidavit.
She related that this is why “I didn’t want anyone saying anything.”
Cowder remains in the jail in lieu of $100,000 bail in the intimidation case and $50,000 bail in the assault case.
