WILKES-BARRE — A person from the Dominican Republic charged in a shooting that turned deadly in Hazleton chose not to have a preliminary hearing on Friday.
Jenndry Samuel Rodriguez Contreras, 22, whose address is listed as Pine Street, Freeland, opted not to have a preliminary hearing for two counts each of third-degree murder and aggravated assault and a single count of criminal conspiracy to commit criminal homicide.
Contreras’ hearing took place before District Judge James M. Dixon of Hazle Township at the Luzerne County Courthouse.
Hazleton City police accused Contreras of shooting Felix Dini, 22, and Rochell Angel Reyes-Cruz, 23, in the rear of 199 S. Wyoming St. on Oct. 7, 2022, according to court records.
Dini and Reyes-Cruz each sustained four gunshot wounds. Dini passed away on Oct. 10, 2022, while Reyes-Cruz survived.
Investigators only knew the shooter as “Jendry,” until a confidential witness provided Contreras’ full name as the gunman in November 2023, court records say.
According to court records, Contreras fled his native Dominican Republic after being accused of an attempted homicide and illegally entered the United States in Texas in early 2022, about seven months before Dini and Reyes-Cruz were shot.
Following the Hazleton shooting in October 2022, Contreras fled to New York City and then returned to the Dominican Republic, where he was apprehended by the National Police in that country.
Court records allege Dini and Reyes-Cruz were shot during a marijuana sale.
Contreras was extradited to Luzerne County in February.
As Hazleton police continued to investigate Contreras, two people charged for their alleged role in the fatal shooting were acquitted by a Luzerne County jury following a trial before Judge David W. Lupas in August 2023.
