State police have accused a man of strangulation and reckless endangerment following a vehicle crash in Jackson Township this week, according to charges filed Wednesday, April 12.

Ian J. Linkenheimer, 20, of Zelienople, was charged with felonies strangulation and criminal mischief, misdemeanors simple assault and reckless endangerment, and summary harassment in connection with the incident.

Police said that around 11 p.m. Tuesday, April 11, Linkenheimer and a female driver were traveling north on Interstate 79 in a black Tesla. During the drive, Linkenheimer grabbed the steering wheel of the vehicle and choked the defendant so that she could not breath, and she suffered an injury to her upper lip, according to the affidavit.

Police said Linkenheimer grabbed the wheel again that night, steering the vehicle into a guide rail, damaging it on the passenger side. The vehicle damage exceeds $5,000, documents show.

Linkenheimer was placed in Butler County Prison in lieu of $5,000 bond. His preliminary hearing before District Judge Amy Marcinkiewicz is scheduled Tuesday, April 18.