Four people were killed after a shooting at a Pennsylvania car wash early Sunday morning that family members said stemmed from a domestic dispute.
Pennsylvania State Police earlier said five people died from the shooting, but it was later clarified four people died. One woman was not shot and only suffered minor injuries as she was able to hide in the back of a car during the attack.
Shots were fired around 3 a.m. at Ed’s Car Wash in Melcroft, about 55 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. Police said the gunman, identified as 28-year-old Timothy O’Brien Smith, killed William Porterfield, 27; Chelsie Cline, 25; Courtney Snyder, 23; and Seth Cline, 21.
Porterfield and Cline arrived at the car wash in one vehicle, which they were killed inside of, WPXI reported. Snyder and Cline were shot in killed in a second vehicle, police said.
An officer stands guard as people comfort each other near the scene of a fatal shooting at a car wash in Melcroft, Pa., Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018.
(Michael Palm /Herald-Standard via AP)
Smith — who police said killed the victims with a semi-automatic rifle and a handfun — remained in a hospital on life support as of late Sunday afternoon, and, according to WPXI, isn’t expected to survive.
Officials have not released a motive, but family members told WPXI the deadly shooting stemmed from a domestic dispute. The alleged shooter had dated one of the people before opening fire on them early Sunday morning.
Officers work on the scene of a fatal shooting at a car wash in Melcroft, Pa., Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018.
(Michael Palm/Herald-Standard via AP)
The owner of the car wash, Ed Bukovac, told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that a neighbor called him around 4 a.m. on Sunday, saying something was wrong at the business. He said by the time he arrived, police were already at the scene.
A man who lives nearby told the newspaper he heard nearly 30 gunshots over the course of several minutes.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
