An Ohio man has been arrested and charged after he allegedly targeted his pregnant sister and her husband in a fatal shooting during a Labor Day party at a Maple Heights park.
Jason Iverson, 29, is charged with murder and attempted murder in the shooting, which killed 30-year-old Mercedes Iverson and her husband, 31-year-old Norbert “Trea” Carter, and wounded a 13-year-old, WOIO reported.
The teen was grazed by a bullet and was treated and released from a local hospital. Maple Heights Police Chief Todd Hansen said investigators don’t believe the boy was targeted, according to WJW.
Police said that Iverson arrived at the park shortly after 3 p.m., and, upon spotting Mercedes Iverson and Carter, immediately launched a physical altercation, WOIO said. The couple broke away from him and walked to their car.
Iverson followed, confronted them in the parking lot, and fired into their car, striking and killing Mercedes Iverson, WEWS reported. Carter got out of the car and fled from the parking lot to the bathroom at the park pavilion, with Iverson following. He shot and killed Carter in the bathroom.
Iverson fled the scene, but police said he was quickly captured, according to WOIO.
“This incident was specifically between the shooter and the victims; there was no randomness to the event,” Maple Heights Police Chief Todd Hansen said. “The scene was rendered safe very quickly with the apprehension of the shooter.”
Hansen said the shooting stemmed from a “longstanding feud” between the family members, WJW reported.
The chief said Mercedes Iverson’s baby did not survive the shooting; he did not say how far along she was in her pregnancy.
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[Featured image: Mercedes Iverson and Norbert “Trea” Carter/Facebook]