Apparent home invasion leads to fatal shooting in Uniontown, police say

UNIONTOWN, Pa. — A man is dead and a woman is critically injured after a shooting in Uniontown on Saturday.

According to investigators, first responders were called to the scene along Pershing Court at 2:16 p.m.

Police tell Channel 11 the shooting stemmed from an apparent home invasion.

Christina Craggette is grateful her niece is alive after she was shot in the leg inside the apartment. Police said the teen was flown to a nearby hospital.

Craggette said her niece underwent surgery after the bullet shattered her bones.

“My niece is young,” said Craggette. “My niece is 19 years old, so it’s horrible.”

Uniontown Police said three people forced their way into the apartment Saturday afternoon and an unknown number of people started firing.

Craggette was visiting her mom just up the road when the gunshots rang out.

“We heard all these sirens and police everywhere just zooming down the street,” Craggette said.

Police said a teenage girl and a man were inside the home at the time. They are not releasing their names for their protection.

Craggette said her niece lives in the apartment.

“Then when we arrived, we seen everybody, the police taping off the scene and obviously we’re in a panic trying to figure out what’s goin’ on,” she said. “So, we’re running to my niece’s door and they’re telling us to back up.”

Detectives said one of the suspects, who forcibly made his way into the home, was 19-year-old Elijah Fitzgerald. He was shot and killed.

The other two suspects got away on foot, according to police.

“I feel like the violence around here needs to stop,” Craggette said. “I feel like the churches need to step in. I feel like we need to come together as a community because these are kids not even reaching the age of 21.”

Police said the man who was also in the home at the time of the shooting was not hurt. He was taken into custody, questioned and released pending further investigation.

The investigation is ongoing. Police are working to collect surveillance video from homes, businesses and traffic cameras, and are also talking to witnesses.

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