A 24\u2011year\u2011old Reading man was jailed Thursday on attempted homicide charges after investigators said he fired multiple shots into the back of a moving SUV on Aug. 4 in northeast Reading, wounding two men, one of them critically.<\/p>\n
James A. Thomas Jr. of the 1100 block of Mulberry Street was arrested Tuesday with the help of the Berks County Emergency Response Team, Berks County District Attorney John T. Adams said Friday.<\/p>\n
Reading police obtained an arrest warrant for him the day after the shooting at North 10th and Marion streets, but he had remained at large since he fleeing the scene of the shooting, Adams said.<\/p>\n
After arraignment Thursday night, Thomas was committed to Berks County Jail in lieu of $2 million bail to await a hearing on two counts of aggravated assault and one count each of attempted criminal homicide and possessing an instrument of crime.<\/p>\n
Investigators said the 24\u2011year\u2011old driver suffered a gunshot wound to the head, and his 22\u2011year\u2011old passenger was struck in the arm.<\/p>\n
According to the probable cause affidavit:<\/p>\n
Officers responded at 6:38 p.m. for a report of a male shot in an SUV that had crashed into a parked vehicle in the 900 block of Marion Street. They found the critically wounded driver behind the wheel. The rear windshield was shattered, apparently by gunfire, and a bullet hole was visible through a rear\u2011seat headrest.<\/p>\n
Police learned of a second victim who was not in the vehicle when officers arrived. He told investigators that he had been in the front passenger seat, heard gunfire, got out of the SUV and ran several blocks to seek cover.<\/p>\n
Detectives collected security camera footage from the immediate area.<\/p>\n
One video shows the SUV traveling westbound on Marion Street at 6:37 p.m., passing the intersection with Mulberry Street. A group is gathered on the porch of a residence on the northwest corner. As the SUV passes, a man later identified as Thomas is seen holding a handgun at his side. He steps off the porch, moves along the side of the property and fires multiple shots toward the westbound SUV.<\/p>\n
Thomas leaves, gets into the driver\u2019s seat of a black sedan and drives south on Mulberry Street. Police learned the vehicle is registered to a relative of Thomas\u2019.<\/p>\n
Footage from another camera shows the SUV continuing westbound in the 1000 block of Marion Street around the time of the shooting, approaching a stop sign at North 10th Street. As it crosses the intersection, the SUV appears to suddenly accelerate, kicking up gravel behind the rear wheels.<\/p>\n
The SUV briefly stops midblock in the 900 block of Marion Street, allowing the front\u2011seat passenger to get out and run south on Clover Street. The SUV continues westbound with the driver slumped over the wheel until it crashes into a parked pickup truck.<\/p>\n
Police recovered three .45\u2011caliber shell casings in the area where the shots were fired.<\/p>\n
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