Criminal Justice

An Allentown woman was charged with possession of a quarter pound of synthetic opioid fentanyl, District Attorney Stephen Baratta announced Wednesday.

Authorities including District Attorney Stephen Baratta and the Palmer Township Police have confirmed a man was apprehended and charged for shooting and killing his in-laws at a 55+ community Tuesday night.

Latasha Santiago, 36, pleaded guilty in March to conspiracy tocommit robbery, a first-degree felony, in the Oct. 17, 2020, shooting death of Christian Lopez-Rodriguez, 21, of Allentown.

LaTarsha Brown is accused of falsely reporting that she found a noose Jan. 10 on her desk in the city’s Department of Community and Economic Development.

The victim was a Bethlehem Township resident and junior at Freedom High School, according to township Police Chief Gregory Gottschall. Authorities say a criminal investigation is underway.

Lehigh and Northampton counties don't release inmates into ICE custody unless federal agents present them a warrant. The policies are likely why the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has labeled the counties as sanctuary jurisdictions.

The Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts shared a news release warning of a recently reported text scam that attempts to "spoof" or mimic the Pennsylvania Courts and/or Unified Judicial System website. The AOPC says anyone who receives the text should not provide payment the text demands or any sensitive information.

Gary J. Moyer, 73, of South Whitehall Township, was pronounced dead at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday in the 100 block of North 38th Street after suffering gunshot injuries, Lehigh County Coroner Daniel A. Buglio said Thursday.

Councilman Frank Pintabone reintroduced his marijuana decriminalization ordinance at Easton City Council on Wednesday, aiming to turn possession into a summary charge. A vote on the matter is expected in two weeks.

The Lehigh County District Attorney's Office is investigating the fatal shooting that occurred in the 100 block of North 38th Street in South Whitehall on Wednesday afternoon.

Allentown police allege Adam Makowka, 27, used a fire escape to enter Jerkera Battle's apartment and shot her to death with an AR-15. Makowka also is charged with trying to kill another man in the apartment.

Tamir Johnson, 35, got out of his car and swung a bat, hitting the other driver’s door. That driver fired one shot that struck Johnson, authorities said.

Jorge Suarez-Santiago, 33, was sentenced to 5-to-15 years in prison in the drug-induced death of his 22-month-old son.

A man whose body was found in a field near Salisbury Elementary School on Friday morning has been identified.

ICE has confirmed the arrest of a suspected murderer from Honduras, Yobani Bonilla-Bonilla, aka, Gilberto Perez-Alvarado, in Easton in June 2025.

Police are investigating after a 37-year-old man was found dead on the 1400 block of Gaskill Avenue in Salisbury Township.

Sammy Sasso, a former Nazareth Area High School state wrestling champion, is charged with possessing unlicensed guns and a controlled substance after police said they stopped the car he was driving because of an expired registration.

Witness said Jose Vladimir Jerez, 24, of Allentown, was driving erratically while trying to pass another car when he crashed his car into a utility pole in October. A 20-year-old passenger, Ezequiel Hernandez-Cartagena, died less than 90 minutes later.

A former Easton Area High School resource officer who pleaded guilty to sending a sexually explicit image of himself to a 16-year-old female student in 2024 was sentenced to 9-to-24 months in Northampton County Prison, it was announced on Wednesday.

Said Bethlehem Police Chief Michelle Kott, “It’s not used for enforcement. It’s just a means, similar to the news media, of being able to bring up that camera and check the traffic conditions, or if there's an accident, it could be utilized for investigative purposes.”

Angel Martinez-Velez, 25, of Allentown, was shot and killed June 1, 2024, on the basketball court at Allentown's Fountain Park.

Allentown police were called just before 2 a.m. Sunday to a home in the 100 block of Pine Street, where officers found a girl suffering from a gunshot wound to the face, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney's Office.