READING, Pa. – A Reading man is behind bars and facing murder charges following a shooting inside a home on the city’s south side.
51-year-old Ismael Echevarria-Vazquez is charged with first and third-degree murder, aggravated assault, possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance and related offenses.
In the early morning hours of Monday, December 29th, a Reading Police officer sitting in a patrol car near city hall was approached by Echevarria-Vazquez, who allegedly told the officer he just shot someone that entered his residence and wanted to turn himself in.
Police detained Echevarria-Vazquez as they conducted an initial search of a home in the 400 block of S. 9th Street.
Inside, they found the body of Brian Ramirez-Ortiz in a first-floor room surrounded by broken glass from a nearby window. Police say the suspect is the sole resident of the home.
Investigators say neighbors reported hearing gunshots on Christmas and then two to four gunshots on December 28th.
After obtaining a warrant, officers processed the scene and recovered two 9mm casings near the victim’s body, a butane torch shaped to look like a firearm from the victim’s front waistband, a pair of sneakers with what appeared to be blood splatter on them in a second-floor room and four bricks of suspected heroin.
An autopsy confirmed Ramirez-Ortiz’s death as a homicide caused by a gunshot wound to the head.
According to court documents, December 28th surveillance footage from the 700 block of Chestnut Street allegedly shows Echevarria-Vazquez and Ramirez-Ortiz talking and hanging out before entering the S. 9th Street home with an unknown male. The suspect and the unknown man were allegedly observed leaving the home a short time later.
Echevarria-Vazquez is being held without bail at Berks County Jail. He has a preliminary hearing scheduled for January 16th.