Police say evidence supports Lower Burrell woman's claim boyfriend tried to run her down

A Lower Burrell man was charged with felony aggravated assault after, police said, evidence supported his girlfriend’s accusation that he tried to run her over with his pickup several times during a dispute.

In addition to the felony charge, Bruno F. Nobilese, 55, of the 400 block of Chicago Avenue faces charges of simple assault, reckless endangerment, reckless driving and driving while under suspension for DUI.

Police said Nobilese’s arrest record includes 11 previous convictions for driving while intoxicated.

He is being detained in Westmoreland County jail in Greensburg in lieu of a $50,000 cash bond. Nobilese faces a preliminary hearing before District Judge Cheryl Peck Yakopec on April 12, according to court records.

Police met with Nobilese’s girlfriend April 4 along Greensburg Road, near the Dairy Queen, shortly after the incident occurred, according to a criminal complaint.

During the interview with police, the woman told them Nobilese broke two of her ribs during a dispute that turned physical March 20, the complaint said. She provided investigators with a hospital bill for $3,599 she received after being treated for the injury, police said.

The woman told investigators the most recent incident started as an argument at her house and that she left because she feared Nobilese would “hurt her again,” according to the complaint.

The woman told police she heard Nobilese’s truck coming from behind as she was walking along a section of Greensburg Road toward New Kensington that only has a narrow path between the roadway and a steep, rocky hillside, the complaint said.

She said the truck came within about a foot of striking her and she had to “jump onto the hillside” to avoid being run over, the complaint said.

The woman told police she was having difficulty running because of the broken ribs she suffered but managed to get to the other side of the roadway onto a grassy area, police said.

She said Nobilese made a sharp U-turn and again tried to run her over, according to the complaint.

The woman told police Nobilese made another U-turn and drove toward her when she ran back across the road to her original location, the complaint said.

She told police Nobilese pulled over, threw several pieces of mail out of the truck in her direction and cursed before driving off, police said.

Police said there were fresh tire marks in the gravel, grass and mud that support the woman’s story.

Investigators said the location of skid marks and footprints also corroborated the accusations.

The woman told police the fractured ribs she suffered happened during an argument with Nobilese over a billiard stick in which he pushed her onto a couch and pressed down on her chest, the complaint said.

She told police Nobilese grabbed her jaw during the argument, causing a hairline fracture, according to the complaint.