A Pennsylvania man who was out on bail for a previous shooting is accused of firing a gun into a home and killing three people, including two young brothers who were playing with kittens when they were struck by the bullets, Fox 43 reports.
Lebanon County prosecutors have charged 22-year-old Alex Torres Santos with three counts of criminal homicide, aggravated assault, conspiracy, and weapons violations in connection with the slayings on Tuesday of 8-year-old Jesus Perez-Salome, 9-year-old Sebastian Perez-Salome, and 19-year-old Joshua Lugo-Perez.
James Fernandez-Reyes, 16, an alleged accomplice, faces the same charges, and a third person is being sought.
Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf on Friday said he intends to seek the death penalty against Torres Santos for his role in the murders.
“In my 14 years as a Lebanon County prosecutor and in my nearly four years as the District Attorney, we have not filed a Death Penalty Notice in any case,” Graf said in a written statement, according to Fox 43. “No other murder committed during my time as the D.A. has risen to the specific legal standard necessary to seek death for the killer. This case meets that standard.”
The boys’ mother was working nearby and heard the gunshots, prompting her to run over to the home on Tuesday evening.
“She’s in shock and is unable to speak coherently,” Felix Muniz Torres, the boys’ uncle, told CBS News of the children’s mother.
Muniz Torres said his nephews were “very innocent and polite” and always played together, adding that “they were very close,” according to CBS News.
Investigators believe that the alleged shooters targeted Lugo-Perez because of an earlier argument. His was body was found on the back porch and it appeared he had tried to flee the gunfire.
The young brothers were in the backyard playing with kittens when the gunfire erupted, according to NBC News.
Lugo-Perez and the boys lived in the house, but he was not related to them. There were at least 27 gunshots and two guns involved.
A 33-year-old neighbor was also hit by a stray bullet but is expected to survive.
At the time of the shooting, Santos was out on bail on charges of aggravated assault, weapons and drug charges. He was required to wear an ankle bracelet and was under house arrest, according to the Lebanon Daily News.
The city of Lebanon is about 70 miles northwest of Philadelphia.
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[Feature Photo: Jesus and Sebastian Perez-Salome/GoFundMe]
