× Thanks for reading! Log in to continue. Enjoy more articles by logging in or creating a free account. No credit card required. Log in Sign up {{featured_button_text}}

JUNEAU — A 67-year-old Watertown man is being held on a $50,000 cash bond after he allegedly choked a 94-year-old Watertown woman with a phone cord during Bible study.

Thomas L. Ciganek is charged with strangulation and suffocation, use of a dangerous weapon and aggravated battery. If convicted of both charges he faces up to 12 years in prison and $20,000 in fines.

During his initial appearance in court Monday, Dodge County Circuit Court Commissioner Steven Seim set a $50,000 cash bond for Ciganek with the conditions that he not have any direct or indirect contact with his victim or her residence.

On Saturday at 10:11 a.m., officers were dispatched to the 1000 block of Hill Street in Watertown for a Life Line alert. Officers made contact with the victim who was on a hospital gurney being loaded into an ambulance. An officer observed that the victim had a very thin red line on the right side of her neck which continued to the front of her throat.

Officers spoke to the victim’s son-in-law, identified as Ciganek, who was on scene. Ciganek said that he believed the victim had a stroke. He claimed that he had come to the victim’s apartment to do Bible study and while sitting at the table the victim passed out, so he called for help.