PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A 16-year-old boy has been charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a 15-year-old Wednesday night in Norristown. Investigators said there was an ongoing dispute between two groups of teens.
The call for the shooting on Haws Alley, off George Street, came in at 8:38 p.m. A 15-year-old boy died from a single gunshot wound to the head.
According to the criminal complaint, 16-year-old Alex Herrera was stopped by police shortly after the shooting because he had a strange gait as he ran away with a large group of other teens, and the sergeant thought he may have been shot.
Herrera told police he was the victim of an assault, and he was taken to the Norristown Police Department, where his mother was contacted.
Charging documents say Herrera told police he and some friends had a “beef” with another group of teens and had set out to find them earlier in the evening. He brought a handgun he said he had purchased from a 17-year-old “to make sure things didn’t get out of hand,” the complaint says.
Authorities said the groups met up three times but had to keep moving because of a police presence at the other locations. At the third location, the complaint says, Herrera told police he was assaulted, pulled the gun, and pointed it at the 15-year-old. He told him to back up, then pulled the trigger.
Herrera is charged with first- and third-degree murder.
Officials say there was an ongoing dispute between two groups of teens
Officials say there was an ongoing dispute between two groups of teens
