Click here to subscribe today or Login.
HAZLETON — One person is in custody and another is dead following a shooting and three-vehicle crash Saturday night in Hazleton, Police Chief Jerry Speziale confirmed Sunday.
At 10:45 p.m., gunfire in the vicinity of First and Seybert streets in Hazleton resulted in suspects fleeing the scene, which led to a crash at the intersection of Seybert Street and East Diamond Avenue, Speziale said.
One person is dead due to the shooting, Speziale said.
“Evidence showed someone else was injured,” he added, but he didn’t specify if the injury was related to the shooting incident or the crash.
Speziale said one person of interest is in police custody, but he could not identify any of the people involved due to the active homicide investigation.
“This was an isolated incident,” he said.
Nearby residents noticed the flashing police lights but were unsure of what was happening.
Kim Reimold, a resident of Fourth Street, saw police vehicles near her street as her family came home from watching fireworks Saturday night.
“I was not sure what happened,” she said. “I try not to watch the news.”
Reimold said the neighborhood is not a quiet area.
“There is crime almost every night,” she said. “I would love to move away.”
Dave Shostak, an 11-year resident of Seybert Street, disagrees, stating the neighborhood is “usually quiet.”
Former Hazleton Mayor and current U.S. Rep. Lou Barletta, R-Hazleton, said crime in the city has remained steady.
“When I was mayor, I developed programs to reach out to the kids and get them involved in the community,” Barletta said as he left Sunday morning Mass at Most Precious Blood Church at Fourth and Seybert streets. “You have to get to the root of the problem and change the lives of the children.”