An 18-year-old who allegedly shot two people, killing one, in New Bedford, Massachusetts, on Friday morning has been arrested, police say.
The alleged shooter – identified as Jon Zell of Mattapoisett – unloaded a handgun at police as they approached him less than an hour after the double shooting but no officers were hit, according to a press release from the Bristol County District Attorney's Office.
New Bedford police received 911 calls around 10:20 a.m. Friday regarding shots fired on Lafrance Street. Responding officers located one of two victims and rushed him to St. Luke's Hospital, according to the DA's release. The victim, identified as 40-year-old Angel Cruz, was later pronounced dead, the DA said.
The second shooting victim was able to get into a vehicle and attempted to drive himself to the hospital, but crashed in the area of Linden and County streets, the district attorney said. That victim, identified only as a 32-year-old New Bedford man, was rushed to St. Luke's Hospital before being taken to Rhode Island Hospital where he is listed in critical condition, according to the DA.
Police had received a description of the alleged suspect as they were investigating, and New Bedford police officers came upon a man matching the shooter's description near the corner of Penniman and Reynolds streets about 45 minutes after the shooting.
When officers approached the suspect, identified as Zell, police say he began firing a handgun at them. After firing all the bullets in the gun, police were able to subdue Zell and take him into custody, the DA said. No officers were injured during the incident and none of the officers returned fire on Zell before getting him into custody, according to the district attorney.
Zell is currently being charged with multiple counts of armed assault with intent to murder. Officials say he may face more charges as the investigation continues.
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Zell is expected to be arraigned Monday morning in New Bedford District Court. It's unclear if he has an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
New Bedford police, Massachusetts State Police detectives, and homicide unit prosecutors are actively investigating this double shooting. The investigation is ongoing.
