READING, Pa. – Law enforcement officials in Reading say two teens are under arrest, charged in the shooting death of another teenager in City Park earlier this month.
18-year-old Luis Rios and 16-year-old Jasir Escoto are facing murder charges in the July 10th fatal shooting of 19-year-old Rafael Tinoco-Villagomez.
On July 10th, just after 9:30 p.m., Reading Police responded to the 1100 block of Washington Street near City Park for a report of a shooting.
Arriving officers found Tinoco-Villagomez laying in a grassy area with a gunshot wound to his chest. He was transported to Reading Hospital where he later died of his injuries.
An autopsy would later determine that Tinoco-Villagomez was shot in the back.
Luis Rios
According to court documents, Tinoco-Villagomez received a notification on a social media application called “Telegram” informing him and other subscribers that there was marijuana hidden somewhere in City Park. Police say the 19-year-old then left for the park to search for it.
At 9:25 p.m., investigators say Tinoco-Villagomez texted a photo of the marijuana to an individual saying he’d found it. A minute later, Tinoco-Villagomez called the same person stating he’d been shot.
A witness at City Park told police they observed two males chasing a third male and distinctly heard one say, “Just give it to me. I am gonna shoot you,” followed by a gunshot. The two pursuing males then left the park, one on a large electric scooter and the other riding a mountain bike, police say.
Authorities say they were able to identify Luis Rios and track his movements in the minutes following the shooting through surveillance video on neighboring streets. He was allegedly observed buying cigar wraps, which are commonly used to smoke marijuana, with a male later identified as Escoto at a corner store in the 800 block of Spring Garden Street.
Jasir Escoto
During an interview with police, Rios allegedly said he and Escoto had participated in multiple “stash and grabs,” which are events where someone hides marijuana in a strategic place in a particular location and other individuals attempt to find it.
Rios allegedly told police he had not left his residence after 5 p.m. on the day of the shooting and that he had not been to City Park, but later admitted to attending the stash and grab after police confronted him with the surveillance video.
Authorities say he told police he rode to the park on an electric scooter and Escoto on a mountain bike, but the pair left the area immediately upon learning someone else had located the marijuana.
16-year-old Escoto, who authorities say is being charged as an adult, allegedly told interviewing detectives that the pair had been at City Park and searched for several minutes but left prior to the marijuana being located.
Both allegedly admitted to police to being angry at not finding the marijuana in the park and then buying cigar wraps to smoke marijuana in the minutes after the shooting. The two told police they had obtained marijuana but allegedly would not say how.
Investigators say the two drastically changed their hairstyles and Escoto shaved his beard in the 48 hours after the shooting.
Court documents state that a search of Rios’ cell phone showed he viewed media coverage of Tinoco-Villagomez’s killing in the days following the incident, specifically the WFMZ website.
Police have not stated if their investigation has led to the recovery of the murder weapon.
Rios and Escoto are charged with second and third-degree murder, robbery and related offenses.
Both are in Berks County Jail awaiting their August 8 preliminary hearings.
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