A late-night confrontation over an alleged sexual encounter inside a Mount Carmel home has left two men — ages 66 and 34 — facing identical criminal charges, after one allegedly pulled a knife near the other's neck and the second fought back with a cane. Raymond F. Wywadis Jr. and Jericho Scott Linkchorst were both charged with terroristic threats, possession of an instrument of crime, recklessly endangering another person, disorderly conduct, and summary harassment following the altercation.
According to NorthcentralPA.com, Linkchorst called police shortly after 1 a.m. to report that Wywadis had pulled a knife on him. Officers James Hornberger Jr. and Rooney responded to the home, where the Mount Carmel Borough Police Department opened an investigation into what happened on the stairs that night.
Per the affidavit cited in that report, Linkchorst became upset after learning Wywadis had sex with a woman in the attic of the home. He reportedly sent messages to the woman, then waited for the encounter to end before confronting Wywadis and escorting him out of the house. Wywadis admitted to having sexual intercourse at the home and to arguing with Linkchorst, and he also admitted to pulling a knife near Linkchorst's neck as the two walked down the stairs, the outlet reported.
A Cane Versus a Blade
Linkchorst, for his part, had a weapon of his own — a cane, which he used to defend himself during the confrontation, according to the same report. Investigators noted that Wywadis had permission to be in the home because Linkchorst's mother had invited him to stay there temporarily, a detail that complicates the question of who, if anyone, was trespassing when the fight broke out.
Despite the contrasting roles — one man allegedly brandishing a knife near another's throat, the other swinging a cane in response — Mount Carmel police filed the same slate of charges against both men. Each now faces a first-degree misdemeanor terroristic threats charge, which under Fairlie Law's explanation of Pennsylvania's Crimes Code carries up to five years in state prison and fines as high as $10,000. The possession of an instrument of crime count, outlined by Justia Law, is also graded as a first-degree misdemeanor with up to five years of potential imprisonment, while the reckless endangerment charges each carry up to two years and a $5,000 fine under state sentencing guidelines.
Two Very Different Pasts
The men's backgrounds stand in sharp contrast. Linkchorst has a documented criminal history in Northumberland County: in March 2018, the Pennsylvania Superior Court affirmed his judgment of sentence after he entered negotiated nolo contendere pleas to felony aggravated assault, simple assault, reckless endangerment, criminal mischief, disorderly conduct, and drug paraphernalia charges tied to a 2016 physical assault, court records reviewed by Justia Law show. He was also arrested by the Catawissa Borough Police Department in September 2020 following a traffic stop, charged with possession of marijuana, possession of a controlled substance, and drug paraphernalia, according to a CRIMEWATCH listing from the department.
Wywadis's record looks nothing like that. The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission awarded him the Carnegie Medal in December 1998 for risking his life to pull a 48-year-old fisherman from the Susquehanna River in Hummels Wharf earlier that year, a rescue that came with a $3,000 grant and national recognition. That history of public heroism now sits alongside a knife-threat charge stemming from a dispute decades later.
Bail, Court Dates, and Local Enforcement Push
Both men were released on $5,000 unsecured bail. The charges were filed through the office of Magisterial District Judge Rachel Wiest-Benner. Wywadis and Linkchorst are both scheduled for preliminary hearings on October 13.
The case lands amid a broader local push on criminal enforcement in the area. In April, Northumberland County District Attorney Michael O'Donnell and Judge Wiest-Benner launched a multi-jurisdictional campaign across Sunbury, Mount Carmel, Shamokin, and Milton targeting unresolved magisterial arrest warrants, according to WQKX 94.1. The Mount Carmel Borough Police Department investigated the incident.
The confrontation adds to a run of recent incidents drawing police attention in the area, following Hoodline's earlier coverage of a fatal motorcycle crash on Snydertown Road in Upper Augusta Township. For now, both Wywadis and Linkchorst remain free on bail as they await their next day in court.
