WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. — A teenager has been accused of shooting and killing a 74-year-old man in Whitehall Township.
Elijah Ceballos, 17, of Whitehall Township, is charged with homicide, firearms not to be carried without a license, possession of a firearm by a minor, and possession of a weapon, according to court paperwork.
He was arraigned Friday. He faces a preliminary hearing on June 3.
In a news release, the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office said will be charged as an adult.
He was taken to Lehigh County Jail, and his bail was denied.
The DA’s office said Whitehall Township Police were called to a shooting at the 5100 block of 3rd Street Thursday shortly after 5 p.m.
Mike Nester | for WFMZ-TV
Officers arrived and found Fernando Guerrero Tabera on an outside patio chair not breathing with multiple gunshot wounds on his torso, leg and chin, the DA’s office said in its news release. First responders provided life-saving measures, but he died of his injuries, authorities said.
According to the DA’s office, the investigation included home surveillance footage that showed the victim sitting on his porch facing the street. A person, later identified as Ceballos, is seen with a dark-colored hoodie, jeans and boots, according to the news release.
The DA’s office said the video shows Ceballos point a gun at the victim and walk away with the weapon still in his hand.
Investigators found 16 spent 9-millimeter shell casings on the street and on the patio in front of the victim, according to the DA’s office.
According to the DA’s office, a witness spoke with police and said he believed Ceballos may have taken a firearm from his home and been involved in the shooting. The witness indicated that Ceballos had entered the home after the shooting, the DA’s office said.
The witness consented to a search of their home in the 5300 block of Main Street, a few blocks away from where the shooting occurred, according to the news release. Court paperwork says the witness was Ceballos’ father.
Inside the home, police found clothing similar to those worn by the shooter and a firearm that also appeared to be the one used in the shooting, according to the DA’s office.
The firearm contained an empty magazine that has a capacity of 17 9-millimeter bullets, according to the news release.
The DA’s office said a second witness told police that he heard the gunshots outside and saw Ceballos with a gun and a ski mask.
That witness took the gun away from Ceballos, authorities said. At the time of the shooting, Ceballos did not have a legal right to use or possess a firearm, the DA’s office said. Court documents say the second witness is Ceballos’ brother.
The brother told police Ceballos had been acting strangely recently and may be using drugs, according to court documents.
Buglio said he is ruling Tabera’s death a homicide.
Around 10:30 p.m., the Whitehall Township Police Department posted on its social media page that there “is no danger to the public.”
The coroner’s office, the Whitehall Township Police Department, the Lehigh County Homicide Task Force, and the Lehigh County District’s Office are investigating.