Neighbors react after off-duty Philadelphia police officer charged in fatal domestic shooting | Nazareth Area
ALLEN TOWNSHIP, Pa. — An off-duty Philadelphia police officer is the suspect in a fatal shooting that happened Friday afternoon in Northampton County, according to District Attorney Stephen Baratta.
The shooting happened around 1:45 p.m. in the 1200 block of Old Gate Road in Allen Township.
25-year-old Kenroy Cummings is accused of fatally shooting a 27-year-old man during a domestic family dispute, authorities said.
He is charged with one count of criminal homicide and one count of fleeing or attempting to elude police, the District Attorney told 69 News.
After the shooting, investigators say Cummings drove off in a car, but he was later taken into custody after returning to the crime scene.
The victim of the shooting was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:45 p.m., according to police.
The Lehigh County Coroner says the man died from gunshot injuries, and has ruled the death a homicide. An autopsy will be conducted on Monday.
For neighbors, the violence was especially unsettling in what they described as a typically quiet community.
John Sousa, who lives just blocks from where the shooting occurred, said he was shocked to learn an off-duty police officer had been arrested in the case.
“A cop involved in something like this? I mean, that’s crazy. You look to those people to protect and serve,” Sousa said.
Sousa said he and his family moved to the area after leaving Bethlehem, where he once found bullets near his car, only to now find himself living near another act of gun violence.
“There’s nowhere impervious to something like this happening. But it really shocked me,” he said.
The case is being investigated by Pennsylvania State Police with assistance from the Northampton County District Attorney’s Office, Northampton Regional EMS, the Troop M Forensic Services Unit, the Troop M Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Specialist (CARS) Unit, and Troop M Bethlehem and Belfast patrol units.
