A Pennsylvania man reportedly crashed his car into a fundraiser crowd, killing at least one and injuring 17 other people before using a hammer to murder his mother who he said he was "tired" of arguing with her over money.
The suspect, who was identified as 24-year-old Adrian Oswaldo Sura Reyes, was arrested minutes after the attacks and is now facing two counts of criminal homicide. The individual allegedly struck the group of people around 6:15 p.m. outside of a bar.
Car Crash, Brutal Murder
The victims were holding a fundraiser for the victims of a house fire that killed 10 people last week. Minutes after the incident, a bystander who was about a mile away from the scene of the crime called 911 and said that someone was assaulting a woman with a hammer.
When the witness asked the suspect what he was doing, he allegedly held up the hammer he was holding and told him to "get back." Sura Reyes allegedly admitted to investigators that he crashed his car into the crowd and then murdered his mother. He noted that he was frustrated over fighting with his mother regarding money, as per Fox News.
The suspect allegedly told police, "Do you know the incident that happened in the bar in Berwick? Yeah, that was me." A judge later denied bail for the individual ahead of a preliminary hearing scheduled for Aug. 29. Sura Reyes also told reporters "sorry" as he was being transported from the Shickshinny police station in the early hours of Sunday morning.
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Sura Reyes was found to have recently been on probation for another attack involving his mother. He allegedly struck the victim in the face using her cellphone on Dec. 26, 2020, because she would not let him use the mobile device.
According to KTLA, State Trooper Anthony Petroski noted that 18 people in total were struck by Sura Reyes' car. The official could not confirm whether or not the crash into the crowd of people was intentional, but they noted that they would release information as soon as it was available.
The Fundraiser Event
The Luzerne County Coroner identified the suspect's mother as 56-year-old Rosa D. Reyes who died after being struck by a vehicle followed by being assaulted with a hammer. Investigators noted that Sura Reyes was now being held in the Columbia County Correctional Facility.
During a midnight news conference, Petroski noted that Sura Reyes was not a suspect in the fire, the cause of which remains under a separate investigation. The official noted that the crash was a complete tragedy and noted that officials were working to address the incident.
The fundraiser was meant to benefit the victims and families of a house fire, including Harold Baker, a volunteer firefighter who responded to the incident and ended up losing his 22-year-old daughter and 19-year-old son, as well as six other family members, to the blaze.
Among the victims of the fire were three children, aged five, six, and seven said Pennsylvania State Police. Authorities said that the oldest victim of the incident was a 79-year-old resident, the New York Times reported.
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