A 37-year-old Hellertown man is facing felony charges after a coworker told police she was sexually assaulted while working at a Five Below store in Souderton.
The employee, who was 19, reported the alleged assault to Hilltown Township Police on Sept. 27. According to court documents summarized in published reports, she said the incident happened in February in the store’s stockroom, at 741 Route 113. She told police her manager, identified as Edward Eisenhard, had called her to help clean the room before allegedly assaulting her.
The complaint also describes an alleged encounter later during the same shift. The employee told investigators Eisenhard followed her into the breakroom, where she was able to get away and call a friend, according to the report.
Police further allege that a phone call between Eisenhard and the employee was intercepted by the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office the day after she reported the incident. In that call, Eisenhard allegedly apologized and described what happened as a misunderstanding, according to court documents.
Eisenhard is charged with involuntary deviate sexual intercourse by forcible compulsion, aggravated indecent assault without consent, aggravated indecent assault by forcible compulsion and misdemeanor counts of indecent assault. He was arrested and arraigned on Oct. 1.
Bail amount needs confirmation before publication: bail was set at $200,000, with 10% ($20,000) required for release. That’s why the two amounts appeared in reports. The citing court records, reported that Eisenhard remained in custody because he had not posted the 10% deposit.
The charges are accusations. Eisenhard is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
