READING, Pa. – Police are accusing a man of shooting into an SUV in Reading, wounding the driver and causing the SUV to crash into a parked pickup truck.
James Arthur Thomas Jr., 40, of Reading, is charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault, possession of an instrument of crime, and simple assault, according to court paperwork.
Police in Reading were sent to the 1100 block of North Tenth Street in Reading on Aug. 4 shortly after 6:30 p.m. for the report of a male who had been shot in an SUV, police say in court documents.
Court paperwork says officers found a man suffering a gunshot wound to the head. The vehicle had crashed into a parked vehicle in the 900 block of Marion Street, according to police.
Authorities said the vehicle’s trunk door window had been shattered, and what appeared to be a bullet hole entry and exit was seen on the rear seat headrest.
Video shows Thomas firing multiple rounds in the SUV’s direction, then getting into a sedan and driving south on Mulberry Street, court documents say.
Investigators found three spent bullet casings near where Thomas was seen firing at the SUV, police say in court documents.
Video shows the victim’s vehicle traveling west in the 1000 block of Marion Street where it approached a stop sign, authorities said. The vehicle is then seen accelerating and stopping mid-block in the 900 block of Marion Street, according to police.
Court paperwork says the SUV’s front-seat passenger then got out of the vehicle and ran south on Clover Street.
Police said the SUV’s passenger was wounded in the left arm in the incident.
The vehicle then continued west with the driver slumping over and crashing into a parked pickup truck, according to authorities.
Bail was set at $2 million. Thomas was unable to post bail, court documents say.
A preliminary hearing for Thomas is scheduled for Sept. 18.