Whitehall Township Man, Edward Joel Rosario-Jimenez, Charged In Deadly Double Shooting In Lehigh Valley Walmart Parking Lot
WHITEHALL TOWNSHIP, Pa. (CBS) -- A 23-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection to a deadly double shooting in the parking lot of a Lehigh County Walmart. Authorities charged Edward Joel Rosario-Jimenez of Whitehall Township on Sunday with criminal homicide, attempted criminal homicide, aggravated assault and firearm not to be carried without a license.
Officers were called to the Walmart parking lot on the 2600 block of MacArthur Road just before 7 p.m. on Friday. Two victims were found with gunshot wounds near a vehicle that was found still running in the parking lot.
Authorities say 20-year-old Nicolette Law of Allentown later died as a result of the gunshot wounds. Law's death has been ruled a homicide.
Investigators obtained surveillance footage from the Walmart store that showed the victim's vehicle arriving and parking in the area of the merchandise pickup lot. Within minutes a black Toyota sports utility vehicle is seen and parks directly in front of the victim's vehicle.
Police interviewed several witnesses, and their identities will not be released. One witness told police that she went to Walmart to pick up her child who is also the child of one of the shooting victims.
Police say she arrived in the Toyota with Rosario-Jimenez and two other people, and that Rosario-Jimenez got into an argument with one of the victims.
The witness says she heard gunshots and let in the Toyota, but Rosario-Jimenez remained in the parking lot.
Another witness says they saw Rosario-Jimenez fire several gunshots at the victims.
Investigators found a handgun hidden in a snowbank adjacent to where the shooting happened.