OCEAN CITY — A New Jersey man was arrested on first-degree assault and other charges this week after allegedly striking his girlfriend with a telephone and choking her with the cord to the point she nearly passed out.
Around 11 p.m. last Sunday, Ocean City Police were dispatched to a hotel on 37th Street for a reported assault. The officer met with the female victim who said he had been in a physical altercation with her boyfriend, identified as Michael Sachkowsky, 41, of Ridgefield, N.J. The victim told police Sachkowsky punched a hole in her suitcase and ripped in half two of her bathing suit tops.
The victim told police Sachkowsky then ripped the hotel phone from her hand and disconnected the cord before striking her in the face with the telephone receiver. According to police reports, the officer observed injuries consistent with the victim’s story including bruising and a cut on her cheek.
The victim told police she attempted to flee the room, but Sachkowsky slammed her leg in the door and then grabbed her by the ankle and leg and dragged her back inside. The officer observed multiple bruises on the victim’s knees, shins and ankles consistent with her story. The victim told police Sachkowsky then pushed her down on the bed and grabbed the cord to a phone charger, wrapping it around her neck and choking her.
The victim told police Sachkowsky tightened the cord around her neck until she was unable to breathe or talk. She said she felt the blood rushing to her head as she stared at Sachowsky before he suddenly released the cord. The victim told police Sachkowsky then pushed her into a chair and raised his fist as if he was going to strike her. She said she was pushed to the ground at least two or three more times.
The officer observed multiple injuries on the victim corroborating her story. According to police reports, she had bruising along her arms from her shoulders to her wrists. She was unable to straighten the fingers on her right hand because of the pain. The officer also observed bruising and abrasions on the victim’s back and she had a lump on the back of her head and a cut on her lip area and the side of her face.
The victim told police she had been dating Sachkowsky for about three years and they had been living together in New Jersey off and on since November. Sachowsky has been charged with first- and second-degree assault and malicious destruction of property. He was taken before a District Court Commissioner and was released on recognizance.