Former KISS axeman Vincent Cusano, better known as Vinnie Vincent, was arrested yesterday on assault charges. According to a report on TMZ, the 58-year-old guitarist allegedly smacked his wife in the face and dragged her through a pile of broken glass on the night he was arrested.

When the police arrived at Cusano's Rutherford, TN home, they also found four dead dogs at the scene.

The arrest was put in motion when Cusano's 44-year-old wife, Diane, arrived at the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office on May 22nd covered in blood and reeking of alcohol. She told the officers there that she had just escaped from the couple's home after being assaulted by Cusano after arguing with him about a "female subject [Vincent] had been talking to."

Diane also told the cops that she tried to get away, but Cusano threw her to the ground four more times. The Sheriff's Office then dispatched officers to the home where they found the ex-KISS guitarist and "four sealed containers containing deceased dogs." Diane told the cops that the dogs had been "killed by one of their aggressive dogs."

Cusano was arrested and booked for aggravated domestic assault. His bond was set at $10,000.

Although he first gained worldwide fame in 1982 as Ace Frehley's replacement in KISS, Cusano already was a veteran studio musician and songwriter. Born in Bridgeport, Conn., he played in a succession of local bands before joining Little Anthony and The Imperials' touring group in the early '70s. After that he played in an obscure rock act called Treasure that was fronted by former The Young Rascals vocalist Felix Cavaliere.

Throughout the rest of the '70s, Cusano found work in the studio session circuit playing on albums by Dan Hartman and Laura Nyro. After being fired from KISS at the end of their 1983 'Lick it Up' tour, he formed Vinnie Vincent Invasion. The combo would go on to make two studio albums before splitting up in 1989.

Since then, Cusano has co-written material for KISS and sporadically released solo material. He's also sued his former KISS bandmates over everything from illegal use of his likeness to unpaid royalties.

Watch the video for 'Lick It Up' by KISS

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