Police in Pennsylvania say that a fight between two brothers’ coworkers led to the shooting deaths of three others and injuries to two more.
At a press conference, Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer said that 61-year-old Wilbert Rosado Ruiz was arrested on multiple charges related to the shooting on May 22. These charges include first-degree murder, aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, and other crimes.
It’s not clear if he has made a plea, and there is no lawyer listed in online court records who can speak for him.
Around 8:30 a.m. that day, the shooting happened at Delaware County Linen, where Rosado Ruiz, who had worked there for a long time, was seen arguing with a female worker. Stollsteimer said he then went outside, talked on the phone, came back inside with a gun, and started shooting and killing people.
Stollsteimer said, “This was a cold-blooded killing.” “He is said to have walked around the factory and started shooting at people in this case,” Stollsteimer said that investigators got camera footage of Rosado Ruiz walking around the business in a planned way.
There were two deaths in the shooting. Stollsteimer said that the dead men were brothers from the Dominican Republic named Leovanny Peña-Peña (29 years old) and Giguenson Peña-Peña (26 years old).
Stollsteimer told reporters, “They just go to work every day at a job that takes care of their family and don’t come home.”
He also said that three other people were hurt in the shooting, including the worker woman with whom Rosado Ruiz had a fight. She said she was able to leave the business, but Rosado Ruiz is said to have followed her outside and fired more shots. He said the suspect’s gun either ran out of bullets or got stuck because the woman wasn’t hit again.
Rosado Ruiz is said to have then left the scene of the crime, but he was later caught nearby. Stollsteimer said Rosado Ruiz bought the gun used in the killing legally in 2018, but he didn’t have a license to carry and hide it on his person, so police charged him with a gun crime.
Stollsteimer also said that Rosado Ruiz had been the subject of a lot of worries before the killing and that there had been a meeting the day before to talk about his behavior at work. He refused to say more about a possible reason.
Stollsteimer said, “This is a terrible event.” There was no reason for it to happen.
After the shooting that killed someone, Chester Mayor Stefan Roots sent his sympathy.
A message Roots put on Facebook on May 22 said, “Today was a tough day in Chester.” “At least two people were killed and three others were hurt when someone opened fire at work at a local business. This happens all too often in America.” Thanks to the first rescuers who caught the suspect quickly and rushed the hurt to the hospital.
The statement went on to say, “My heart is broken for the victims, their families, the survivors, their coworkers, and all of our city’s residents and neighbors.” In the coming days, everyone who is touched will need a lot of help. It is my job as mayor to keep working with the Police Department, other elected leaders, and community groups to make Chester a safe place to live.
