One Pittsburgh man is charged with fatally shooting another early Saturday in the city’s Northview Heights neighborhood.
Pittsburgh police have arrested Cory Lavelle Carter, 41, a resident of Bedford Dwellings, on a charge of criminal homicide in the death of Laron Harrison, 38.
Harrison was shot multiple times while visiting at a home in the 100 block of Hazlett Street, according to a criminal complaint filed by police.
Police said a witness in the home told investigators the shooting happened while the witness was listening to music and reading a book and Harrison was speaking to an unknown female.
The witness said a person wearing a black hoodie and carrying a pistol came to the front door, which was partially open, and started shooting.
Harrison was pronounced dead at the scene shortly before 1:15 a.m., according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. The death was attributed to gunshot wounds to the torso and head, with injuries to the brain.
Police said Harrison was found lying in the living room, where investigators recovered a bullet that had lodged in a couch and four 9mm shell casings.
Police said they obtained video footage showing a suspect, later identified as Carter, briefly entering the home at the same time gunshots were detected in the vicinity, just before 1 a.m., by the city’s ShotSpotter system. Footage showed the suspect and a female companion running from the home and entering a Volkswagen Jetta that then departed the neighborhood.
Carter was identified as the owner of the Jetta and was later arrested when police obtained a search warrant for the car and surrounded it.
During an interview, police said, Carter told investigators he was in Northview Heights because he operates a jitney service, which is an unlicensed taxi.
Police said Carter admitted he was in the area at the time of the shooting and was wearing a black hoodie, but he denied having any involvement in the homicide.
According to the complaint, Carter told investigators he knew Harrison. He claimed that Harrison had problems with him, but he denied having problems with Harrison.
Carter was arraigned Sunday, was denied bail and was placed in the Allegheny County Jail. He faces a June 13 preliminary hearing.
Online court documents didn’t list an attorney representing him.
Police said Harrison, who resided on Rhine Street in the city’s Spring Hill-City View neighborhood, was involved in a May 27 shots-fired incident on that street.
Court documents indicate he was free on $5,000 percentage bail for charges including firearms-related violations, reckless endangerment and evading arrest.
