Former KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent arrested on suspicion of assaulting his wife



Former KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent has been arrested on suspicion of assault after his wife accused him of hitting her in the face, throwing her to the ground and dragging her through broken glass.

Diane Cusano, 44, was bleeding and smelled of alcohol when she drove herself to a sheriff's office following a row with her 58-year-old husband at their Tennessee home, a police report claims.

After interviewing Cusano, sheriffs arrested Vincent on domestic aggravated assault charges.

Mugshot: Former KISS guitarist Vinnie Vincent has been arrested on suspicion of assault after his wife accused him of hitting her in the face, throwing her to the ground and dragging her through broken glass

He was taken into custody, where he posed for a mugshot before being released on $10,000 bail.

Cusano told officers that she and Vincent, whose real name is Vinnie Cusano, began arguing over a woman he was talking to on Saturday evening.

She claims the guitarist became 'verbally aggressive', telling her to 'get the f*** out of the house', and then 'smacked' her in the face.

She said Vincent proceeded to grab her by the hair, throw her to the ground and dragged her through a pile of glass from a broken plate that was lying on the floor.

As she was trying to get away, the musician allegedly continued to throw her to the ground four times.

According to an incident report by Rutherford County Sheriff's Department, when Cusano arrived at the police department she was 'covered in blood and appeared to be intoxicated because of the strong odor of an intoxicant about her person.'

She was taken to the Middle Tennessee Medical Centre to receive treatment for her injuries.

The report also states that when deputies visited Vincent at his home, they found four sealed containers with dead dogs inside.

When PAWS animal service asked Cusano about the dead animals she said they had been killed by one of their aggressive dogs.

Vincent, who was known as Ankh Warrior during his time in KISS, would not answer any questions about the incident and was arrested.



He is due to appear in court on June 23.

Success: Vincent famously took Ace Frehley's place in KISS in 1982

Vincent famously took Ace Frehley's place in KISS in 1982.

He was initially brought into the band as an uncredited studio replacement for Frehley, during the recording sessions for the Creatures of the Night album.

After playing on the record, Vincent was asked to become an official member of KISS and remained in the group for two albums.

He quit in 1984, at the end of the Lick It Up tour, following a row over writer/publisher royalties.

In 1997 Vincent sued KISS frontman Gene Simmons and the band's management company over royalties and other matters. The lawsuit was not settled until 2001.

Simmons famously said: 'I named Vincent Cusano 'Vinnie Vincent'. That's the only gift he's allowed. It's interesting that Vinnie hasn't changed his name back to Vinnie Cusano.'