Boy, 16, shot outside Greensburg apartment; police make 2 arrests

A 16-year-old boy was shot Sunday outside a Greensburg apartment complex, and police arrested two people Monday, according to Capt. Shawn Denning.

Officers were called to Eastmont Estates about 1:30 p.m. Sunday for a reported shooting involving several people. The teen was shot in the leg and hand and is expected to recover, Denning said.

Investigators seized three firearms, at least two of which are believed to have been involved in the shooting, he said.

“We do believe that there’s at least one firearm, maybe two, that are unaccounted for,” he said.

The shooting apparently was precipitated by an ongoing feud among members of two groups related to purported burglary and theft of firearms, according to court papers.

“Earlier in the day, there had been some arguments back and forth on social media and had also escalated to tires allegedly being slashed,” Denning said.

Three people — Issac C. Morton, 20, of Greensburg, a woman and her brother — were walking into an apartment building when Jaron Malik Haten-McCoy, 17, of Greensburg and the 16-year-old boy got out of a car in the parking lot and confronted them, police said. Morton’s group went into the building when the woman told authorities Haten-McCoy shot at them, according to court papers.

Morton and the woman returned fire and called 911. Police said an entrance door at one of the buildings had numerous bullet marks on both sides.

Haten-McCoy is charged as an adult with attempted homicide, reckless endangerment and possession of a firearm by a minor. He was being held at the Regional Youth Services Center in Hempfield on $200,000 bail.

Morton is being held at the Westmoreland County Prison on $50,000 bail for a weapons violation. Denning said authorities expect to charge the woman who was with Morton.

Denning said those accused of involvement are lucky no one else was hurt, given the location of the shooting in a busy apartment complex with a playground nearby.

“It is sad to believe that teenage kids are involved in possessing guns,” he said. “None of them that were involved legally possessed those firearms.”

Neither Morton nor Haten-McCoy had attorneys listed in online court records. Preliminary hearings are set for July 1.