Communities work to heal after 2 teens shot, killed in Beaver County

BEAVER COUNTY, Pa. — Community members and church leaders from Aliquippa and Ambridge walked in solidarity across the bridge connecting the city and borough to bring people together Tuesday and pray for the violence to end.

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Bishop Kenneth G. Crumb Sr. organized the prayer walk to help bring comfort and hope to the two broken neighboring communities.

Nicole Freeman of Ambridge saw the group on her way home from work and joined in.

“I was like, ‘What’s going on?’ They’re like, ‘We’re having a prayer vigil for Aliquippa and Ambridge,’ and I was like, ‘Good,’” Freeman said.

It comes after the brutal murders of two 15-year-old boys over the weekend.

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Asaun Moreland, 15, was gunned down Sunday evening after Ambridge police said two suspects stalked him before killing him in what detectives described as an ‘execution-style’ murder in the middle of Church Street.

“We couldn’t even turn up our street because the baby was laying in the street,” Freeman said. “I don’t want to see that. Nobody wants to see nobody’s baby laying in the street. It’s just terrible.”

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That deadly shooting happened less than a day after the murder of Dahvea Sparrow, 15, who was shot and killed when leaving a house party in Aliquippa.

Many in the tight-knit communities said they know the families of the two teens. That includes Rachel Armstead, an associate pastor at a church in Ambridge. Armstead, who was born and raised in Aliquippa, said she wants to see real change from the federal level down.

“We need something that’s going to impact and actually make a difference,” Armstead said. “We have people losing their lives and that should not be the case. These young men were gone far too soon.”

Freeman believes prayer is enough to end gun violence.

“Prayer is definitely enough to end the violence,” she said to Channel 11 News reporter Antoinette DelBel. “These kids, they’re hopeless. They don’t think that there’s no future for them, and when you’re hopeless, you’re bound to do anything. So, I think we need to show them the love of Christ and the hope.”

Nasean Hunt, 18, is now facing homicide charges in connection to Moreland’s death. Police are still searching for a second suspect in that case.

There are no arrests in Dahvea ‘Dahv’ Sparrow’s murder. To help with his funeral expenses, click here.

A $10,000 reward is being offered for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those involved in Sparrow’s death.

A balloon release will be held in Sparrow’s honor. It will be held on Knoll Street in Aliquippa at 8 p.m. on Wednesday.

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