Body camera video shows arrest of friend of Bensalem murder suspect
By: Body camera footage obtained by NBC10 shows the aftermath of a police chase in Ohio that led to the arrest of a man who was in a car with the suspect in a Halloween shooting that left a Bucks County teenager dead, investigators said.
Peter Romano, a 14-year-old student at Snyder Middle School and Bensalem, Pennsylvania, resident, was killed in the triple shooting that began as officers responded to a call of a large group fighting in a parking lot at the corner of Bristol Pike and Woodbine Avenue at about 7:35 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 31.
He was pronounced dead shortly after being taken to a nearby hospital, officials said.
The shooter was spotted on surveillance video fleeing in a gray 2014 Hyundai Elantra, Bensalem police said.
Police sent out an alert to be on the lookout for the Elantra, which had been previously reported stolen out of nearby Bristol Township, Pennsylvania, investigators said. They also named 19-year-old Sean Hughes, from Lower Makefield Township, as a person of interest in Romano's killing.
On Thursday, Nov. 2, around 2:15 p.m., police in Marysville, Ohio, -- a suburb of Columbus -- spotted the Elantra and tried to conduct a traffic stop based on a license plate reader hit, Bensalem and Marysville police said. The operator of the Elantra was considered "armed and dangerous."
The driver of the Elantra didn't stop, and a high speed chase ensued across several streets, Marysville police said. In the bodycam footage, one of the pursuing officers is driving as fast as 90 mph.
Police said a pursuing officer then deployed spike strips along Northwest Parkway near Polling Road ahead of the pursuit.
"While the spike strips were effective, the vehicle continued to flee onto Poling Road from Northwest Parkway," a police spokesperson wrote. "Marysville officers continued the pursuit along Poling Road onto Bear Swamp Road before the suspect vehicle stopped, and the driver and front seat passenger jumped out of the vehicle and fled on foot."
The bodycam video shows officers with guns drawn running after Hughes in a field. When police found him, he was dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to investigators.
Police officers also found the passenger, later identified as 25-year-old Joshua Marquez, lying in some tall grass a short distance off the road, Marysville police said. In the bodycam footage, Marquez tells police he had wanted to surrender and wanted to get out of the car, but Hughes refused to let him leave. He also appears to cooperate with the officers as they take him into custody.
Marquez was taken into custody without incident and later transported to a hospital due to a medical issue, according to investigators. In the video, Marquez tells the officers he was having trouble breathing, and they allow him to sit up.
Investigators said Marquez was a convicted felon who was in possession of a handgun during the police chase. He allegedly tossed the gun near where the chase ended. The weapon, a loaded revolver, was later recovered by police, according to investigators.
Marquez was charged in Ohio with third-degree having weapons while under disability. On Monday, his bond was set at $250,000. It was unclear if he had an attorney who could comment on his behalf.
Police have not yet determined if Marquez was involved at all in the triple shooting in Bensalem. Sources told NBC10, however, they believe Marquez was in Ohio at the time of the Bensalem shooting and that Marquez said he was with his sister.
"We will continue to pursue all leads in our attempt to identify any other potential suspects engaged in the planning or solicitation of this crime, including occupants of the vehicle used in the murder," Bensalem police said.