A potential plea deal for a man charged with attacking a coworker with a meat cleaver last month in Greensburg was halted Tuesday due to a judge’s worries about both men’s immigration status.
A proposed plea deal for a man charged with attacking a co-worker last month in Greensburg with a meat cleaver was put on hold (Photo: mynbc15)
Westmoreland County prosecutors attempted to rush the case through court less than a month after the alleged Aug. 15 incident.
In the recent published article by Trib Live, as per to Assistant District Attorney Amanda Rubin, a plea would have permitted the victim to be released from custody who was being held on a material witness warrant for fear of fleeing the jurisdiction before trial. Prosecutors are also concerned about the accused victim’s capacity to testify in court, according to Rubin.
According to authorities, the victim, a 19-year-old Mexican immigrant, was struck twice in the head with a meat cleaver at a Main Street house in Greensburg where he and his accused attacker lived. According to authorities, both individuals worked at Mr. Tokyo, a Japanese sushi restaurant that opened this spring in Hempfield.
Liwu Tiang, 57, a man charged with attempted homicide, severe assault, reckless endangerment, and simple assault has been imprisoned since last month.
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Tiang, a man charged with attacking a coworker was scheduled to enter a guilty plea to one count of aggravated assault on Tuesday, but that deal was halted by Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Christopher Feliciani, who said he needed information from federal officials about the defendant’s and victim’s immigration status.
According to Yahoo News, Rubin said she couldn’t say whether either man had legal status in the United States. Prosecutors claimed Tiang, a man charged with attacking his coworker and his accuser shared a Greensburg home owned by their employer.
As per to Westmoreland County property records, the Main Street home where Tiang, a man charged with attacking his coworker and his victim lived is owned by June Xu Zhang, who gives a Uniontown address on tax paperwork. In a phone conversation Tuesday, Kevin Zhang identified himself as the owner of Mr. Tokyo and stated that he did not know Tiang , a man charged with attacking his coworker or the alleged victim of the meat cleaver attack. Zhang verified ownership of the Main Street residence.
Investigators discovered Tiang, a man charged with attacking his coworker, had an expired work permit in the United States issued in California. A Mandarin interpreter accompanied him in court. Tiang, a man charged with attacking his coworker, is a documented immigrant, according to defense attorney Michael Worgul, and may have legal status. It’s been more difficult to find information regarding Tiang’s accuser. According to Rubin, the claimed victim, who had two head wounds glued shut, speaks little English, has a Mexican birth certificate, and speaks Tzotzil, a rarely used Mayan dialect.
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