TAYLOR BOROUGH, Lackawanna County — A Taylor man is accused of beating his 83-year-old father for not making dinner for him when he returned home from work, according to a criminal complaint.
Frank Steinetz III, of Taylor Borough in Lackawanna County, is charged with aggravated assault, simple assault and recklessly endangering another person for the incident, which occurred Monday night.
Taylor police say an officer was called to Steinetz’s home for the report of a possible assault in progress. The officer knocked on the front door, and Steinetz answered. Police observed that he was sweating and breathing heavily, as if he had just completed strenuous activity, according to the arrest affidavit.
When told that there were reports that someone was screaming inside his home, Steinetz allegedly told police he had been arguing with his father. He gave police permission to enter the home and talk to his father, Frank Steinetz II.
As police entered the home, the victim and his wife were observed leaving through a side door. The suspect allegedly said, “See? Everything is fine.” Police spoke to the victim and asked if he was all right, and while the suspect continuously repeated that everything was fine, the victim allegedly quietly mouthed to police “He beat me up,” the arrest affidavit says.
The victim, described by police as “extremely frail,” stated that his son began yelling at him after he arrived home from work, allegedly angry that the victim hadn’t prepared a meal for when the suspect got home. The victim told police that Steinetz had punched him repeatedly in the face, head, arms, and legs. Police observed bruising on side of the victim’s face and additional bleeding from the arms and legs, according to the arrest affidavit.
A neighbor told police he was working outside when he heard screaming and the sounds of a suspected physical assault coming from the Steinmetz home. He told police he heard someone say “Oh, does that hurt?”
The victim was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment, while Steinmetz was arrested.
