Darek Michael Hart

WARSAW — A Warsaw man was arrested after allegedly battering a woman.

Darek Michael Hart, 27, 3699 N. CR 175E 150, Warsaw, is being charged with strangulation, a level 6 felony; and domestic battery, a class A misdemeanor.

On July 16, Kosciusko County dispatch informed an officer with the Warsaw Police Department of a woman being forced into a vehicle. The officer found the vehicle traveling north on Ranch Road and pulled the vehicle over, identifying the front seat passenger as Hart. The woman was driving the vehicle at the time of the incident.

According to court documents, the officer noticed the vehicle’s front windshield was broken and had several holes in it. The woman said she and Hart were arguing when Hart placed his hand over her mouth and hit her on the right side of her face, causing her head to hit the driver’s side window of the vehicle.

The woman said she then stopped the vehicle and began walking when Hart got into the driver’s seat and drove beside her, yelling at her to get back into the vehicle. Hart then struck the windshield with his fist several times, causing it to break.

Hart has already been arrested and released on his own recognizance. He has an initial hearing scheduled for 1 p.m. Aug. 12, in Kosciusko Superior Court II.