An influential businessman and restaurateur from Ohio has confessed to the violent act of choking a woman he was romantically involved with, following accusations that he taunted her with, “You think God is going to help you?” as she prayed for her survival.

Robert “Bobby” George, 44, residing in Lakewood, reportedly forced a towel into the mouth of the 25-year-old victim, bit her nose, and spat in her face during a brutal assault in June 2024, according to Cuyahoga County prosecutors. On Monday, George agreed to a plea deal enabling him to sidestep incarceration for attempted strangulation—a fifth-degree felony that could have resulted in up to a year in prison, as noted by local NBC station WKYC. Instead, he received five years of community control, or probation.

“If there had not been a joint recommendation of probation that the victim agreed on, I may have sent you to prison. Do you understand that?” Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Joy Kennedy reportedly informed George.

“I do,” George acknowledged.

George, who is the proprietor of TownHall restaurant and the Barley House in Cleveland, as well as other local ventures, assaulted his girlfriend during a heated argument, repeatedly choking her over several hours, according to law enforcement and prosecutors. He allegedly threw the victim around their shared home and prevented her from leaving.

George’s indictment stated, “[George] did knowingly attempt to cause or create a substantial risk of physical harm to Jane Doe by means of strangulation,” confirming that Jane Doe was someone with whom George had been in a dating relationship.

George was initially charged with a number of felonies, including attempted murder and rape, for allegedly attacking the woman numerous times over several months, according to Cleveland.com. Prosecutors said members of the DA’s office met with the victim and worked out a plea deal for George, with the parties spending “a lot of time” together.

“Bobby George will be a convicted felon for the rest of his life,” prosecutor Jane Hanlin told reporters after the sentencing, according to WKYC. “No matter what he does, no matter where he goes for the rest of his life, he’ll be branded a convicted felon.”

Asked if she thought his punishment was strict enough, Hanlin said, “I believe that he is a man who abuses women, and I believe that it took this young girl to make him accountable and to hold him responsible for what he did. She gave up 14 months of her life to work with the police, to work with the state, on this matter to make sure that everybody knows who he is.”

George’s girlfriend was allegedly hiding in a closet and praying when he asked her if she thought “God” was going to help her during his attack. He was accused of sexually assaulting and assaulting her multiple times between November 2023 and July 2024.

“He can be very dangerous,” Hanlin told reporters, when asked what the victim wanted people to know about George. “That there is a facade that he puts on for certain people that allows him to appear as though he’s very charming, he’s certainly very charismatic,” Hanlin said. “That was one of the things that was most important to the victim in this case, that he be labeled as a convicted felon, that it be a felony offense of violence, and that that stay with him forever.”

Hanlin provided a statement submitted by the victim during George’s sentencing, which said she now has “difficulty trusting anyone” besides her family.

“I am terrified of the defendant, his lies and manipulation, and what he may do to me or someone I love in retaliation for speaking out,” the woman said. “For my safety, I moved in with my parents. I find it difficult going anywhere alone or anywhere outside my house at all.”

Describing the alleged assaults she endured, the woman told the court, “It began with yelling, calling me derogatory names, and breaking things. Not long after he began pushing, shoving, and pinning me to the ground, then knocking me in the mouth and pulling my hair. Pulling my hair quickly escalated to whipping and slamming my head on objects. When I screamed for help, he would shove a towel down my throat.”

George released a statement of his own after the sentencing, in which he compared himself to President Donald Trump being “targeted by his political enemies,” Cleveland.com reports.

“So was I,” George said. “He was vindicated, and I will be, too.”

George blasted his prosecution as being “politically motivated” and said that his “relentless pursuit of justice against those who weaponized the legal system against me is just beginning.”

The disgraced restaurateur reportedly lost $3.5 million in funding from the Ohio Senate to support plans George had to construct a $35 million eatery and entertainment complex near the Cuyahoga River. George told the court Monday that he was “not admitting to a crime but rather acknowledging taking a single step toward a crime,” according to The Columbus Dispatch.

“I am a fighter at heart and I wanted to keep fighting this injustice,” George said. “But after careful consideration and counsel, I chose to think of the effect that another year of this would have on my family, friends and the over 2,000 employees that I lead.”

George will face up to a year in prison if he violates the terms of his probation, which include not contacting the victim or anyone in her family. He has been ordered to also complete at least 20 hours of community service during the first six months of his probation.