STRUTHERS — A Youngstown man is facing assault charges after being accused of striking an employee and breaking her jaw while being trained.

A warrant has been issued for Eddie Crook Jr., 28, after police say he punched a 33-year-old woman training him to operate equipment at Astro Shapes in Struthers.

On Wednesday, Struthers police Chief Tim Roddy said Crook is on parole for an aggravated robbery conviction in 2012. Court records show he was sentenced Aug. 15, 2012, to eight years in prison with credit for 182 days served.

Officers responded to call at 2:40 a.m. Saturday for a male employee assaulting a female employee, a police report states. When the victim met with officers at the plant, they observed she was unable to speak and large amounts of blood covered her shirt, hands and face.

Roddy confirmed the victim’s jaw is broken in three places and she also had other facial fractures as a result of the assault.

Witnesses told officers the victim was training Crook how to operate a piece of machinery, noting that Crook was “lazy” and he was “disrespectful” toward the victim, the report states.

After the victim corrected Crook multiple times, witnesses said he punched her in the face, causing her to fall to the ground and hit her head on one of the machines. Crook left the scene before law enforcement arrived, the report states.

Crook was hired through a temporary agency, witnesses told police.

The victim was taken to St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital and she was still in the hospital as recently as Tuesday, Roddy said.

Roddy said as of late Wednesday morning, Crook had not turned himself in to law enforcement, but the Struthers police department was in communication with Crook’s parole officer.

Today, another warrant from the parole office will be issued for a parole violation, Roddy said.

afox@tribtoday.com