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Alleged mall instigator charged with aggravated assault, back behind bars

A Butler man who was allegedly involved in the Jan. 18 shooting at the Clearview Mall was arrested Tuesday on charges relating to a violent assault with a gun, police said.

Damian J. Blystone, 19, was placed in Butler County Prison after being charged with two counts of felony aggravated assault, felonies for possessing firearms and drug sales and misdemeanors for unlawful restraint, terroristic threats, reckless endangerment and simple assault, according to a release from Butler City police chief Robert O’Neill.

Police said they responded at about 2:36 p.m. Tuesday to a violent situation involving Blystone and one other person. According to the release, a 14-year-old juvenile was a witness to incident.

The teen told police Blystone punched her several times, dragged her around the residence and threatened to kill her, according to the release. Police said Blystone then fired a shot with a handgun near the alleged teen’s head and struck her repeatedly with the weapon.

The teen was taken to Butler Memorial Hospital for injuries, police said.

Blystone was taken into custody by police and a search warrant for his residence was obtained. Police said two large Ziploc bags of marijuana, marijuana THC cartridges and two pistols were found during the search.

According to police, one of the firearms discovered had an altered serial number.

According to charging documents, Blystone was out on bail from other charges related to a shooting Jan. 18 at the Clearview Mall parking lot. According to police, Blystone was charged after officers uncovered evidence he threatened the shooter, Carlos Gonzalez Carill, shortly before the shooting.

Blystone and his two friends were shot as a result of the incident and suffered minor injuries.

During a Jan. 26 traffic stop in Middlesex Township, Blystone was found to have two stolen guns in his vehicle. Those guns had been reported stolen along with two others by Penn Township Police, who also filed their own charges following his arrest. Middlesex Township Police charged Blystone with felony stolen property possession as well as a traffic citation for driving without insurance.

According to charging documents, Blystone was released Sept. 1 from Butler County Prison.

A previous version of this article incorrectly identified the victim as the juvenile.

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