Man allegedly drives car into crowd gathered for victims of massive fire and then beats mom to death
08/15/2022 1:19 pm PDT
BERWICK, Pa. (TCD) -- A 24-year-old man was taken into custody after he allegedly drove into a crowd of people attending a fundraiser in honor of 10 people who died in a local fire and then went home and beat his mother to death.
According to Pennsylvania State Police, on Saturday, Aug. 13, at 6:15 p.m., a group of people gathered on West 2nd Street in Berwick for a community event when a car reportedly accelerated into the group, killing one person and injuring 17.
Not long after that, Pennsylvania State Police received a call about a man physically assaulting a female. She was dead by the time troopers arrived. State Police said the suspect in both incidents was taken into custody.
In an updated press release, Pennsylvania State Police identified the suspect as 24-year-old Adrian Oswaldo Sura Reyes and the woman who died at the fundraising event as 50-year-old Rebecca Reese. Five people who were transported to nearby hospitals were released, while five remain in critical condition and two in fair condition.
According to the statement, after driving into the crowd, Sura Reyes allegedly went to his home in Berwick, where he lived with his mother, and "intentionally struck" her with his car. He then allegedly "exited the vehicle and struck her in the head multiple times with a blunt object, killing her."
He was taken into custody on two counts of criminal homicide, but he could reportedly face additional charges.
According to the criminal complaint cited by the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader, prior to driving into the crowd, Sura Reyes reportedly got into an argument with his mother and left his home feeling angry. He reportedly admitted to accelerating as he approached group and said, "I didn’t ram 'em. I just ran them over."
When he arrived home, he allegedly took a hammer out of his car and used it to beat his mother.
Those congregating on West 2nd Street gathered to honor the victims who died earlier in August after a fire tore through a house, killing 10 people who ranged in age from 5 to 79 years old.
According to The Associated Press, the blaze reportedly killed a volunteer firefighter’s son, daughter, three grandchildren, father-in-law, mother-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, and two other relatives.
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