KENNETT SQUARE, PA — A Glenmoore man already facing charges stemming from an alleged knife threat was hit with new criminal counts this week after investigators determined he repeatedly contacted the same victim in violation of court-ordered bail conditions, according to the Kennett Square Police Department.
Police said that on January 12, 2026, at approximately 2:22 p.m., officers were notified by an investigator at Chester County Prison that 50-year-old Richard Morinelli had allegedly been contacting a victim from a prior case despite explicit bail conditions prohibiting any contact. Investigators reviewed 14 phone calls allegedly placed by Morinelli and, based on that review, filed six counts of intimidation of witnesses or victims in District Court 15-3-04. A preliminary hearing is pending.
The new charges are tied to an earlier incident that unfolded late last year in Kennett Square.
According to police, on Sunday, December 21, 2025, at approximately 1:43 p.m., a voicemail was left on an unmonitored administrative phone line requesting that officers check on a woman in the 200 block of South Mill Road. The caller reported that the woman was allegedly being threatened with a knife by her ex-boyfriend.
Officers became aware of the voicemail the following morning and responded to the address on December 22, 2025, at about 8:48 a.m. to conduct a welfare check. During that investigation, police allege they determined Morinelli had threatened the female victim with a steak knife, sent multiple threatening text messages, and followed her to a casino the previous night.
Based on those findings, an arrest warrant was issued by District Court 15-3-04. Morinelli was taken into custody on December 23, 2025, by Upper Chichester Police Department officers and transported by Kennett Square police to Central Booking at Chester County Prison.
Authorities emphasized that the most recent charges stem solely from the alleged violation of bail conditions and intimidation-related conduct following Morinelli’s initial arrest.
All charges in this matter are allegations. Morinelli is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
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