Jan. 15—HAZLE TWP. — Pennsylvania State Police at Hazleton are seeking assistance in finding Eliezer Santana charged for his alleged role in the fatal shooting of Rolando K. Cepeda outside an auto repair garage nearly two years ago.
Santana, 18, is the third person charged in the deadly shooting outside Performance Auto Repair on West 23rd St. on April 14, 2023.
Reymer Gonzales, 19, of Hazleton, is facing charges of criminal homicide, aggravated assault and three counts of criminal conspiracy in Luzerne County Court while Ismael Valdez Batista, 19, of Mahanoy City, Schuylkill County, is awaiting sentencing after he pled guilty to criminal attempt to commit criminal homicide.
Cepeda was sitting on a stool outside the auto repair garage when he was approached by two men wearing masks and shot multiple times, according to state police.
Cepeda was flown to Lehigh Valley Hospital Cedar Crest where he died April 15, 2023.
A second shooting victim, Carlos D. Jorge, survived.
Gonzales and his attorney, Thomas C. Clemens, appeared earlier this week for a status conference before Luzerne County Judge David W. Lupas. Clemens has filed motions seeking to prohibit prosecutors from using chat logs and videos from social media apps.
During a motions hearing in July, assistant district attorneys James L. McMonagle and Brian A. Coleman introduced a video that was live-streamed on a social media app that allegedly depicted Gonzales bragging about Cepeda being in a body bag. The live-stream, in which Gonzales allegedly used the screen name Joca Grxmes, was broadcasted the night Cepeda was shot.
Batista was alleged by state police of being the driver of the two gunmen.
Santana is facing charges of criminal homicide and aggravated assault.
Anyone with information about Santana’s whereabouts is asked to call the Pennsylvania State Police at Hazleton at 570-459-3890 or anonymously at 1-800-472-8477.