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West Pittston Police request assistance in locating suspect alleged to have stolen lawn mower

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Larksville police announce construction on State Street

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8211; A fatal shooting Friday on Stanton Street was only the latest in a string of crimes that have cast a cloud over the Rolling Mill Hill neighborhood.</p><p>Police said they found the body of 34-year-old Robert Hood in the backyard of 320 Stanton St. <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/558692/police-coroners-office-at-scene-of-reported-shooting-in-wilkes-barre" target="_blank">when they responded to a report of a break-in and shooting around 8:36 p.m</a>. According to Times Leader archives and the Wilkes-Barre Police Department&#8217;s citywide crime reports, there have been at least four shootings, two stabbings and one armed robbery within a five block radius of Stanton Street in the past year.</p><p>John Harch, 86, owner of the Electron TV and Furniture store on Hazle Street, said the crime has &#8220;gotten worse&#8221; and &#8220;is nowhere near how it was before.&#8221;</p><p>A Times Leader review of police CompStat numbers in March <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/525662/data-show-dramatic-climb-in-gun-violence-in-wilkes-barre" target="_blank">found reports of aggravated assaults with firearms had increased more than 300 percent from 2005 to 2015</a>. City residents interviewed at the time <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/527878/wilkes-barre-residents-and-activists-questioning-crime-stats-say-they-feel-safe-in-the-city" target="_blank">questioned the official data</a>, which police officials said was, while not precise, reflective of the trends they have seen play out on the city&#8217;s streets.</p><p>Previous incidents in Rolling Mill Hill include an <a href="(http:/timesleader.com/news/local/491645/police-still-investigating-three-shootings-from-this-week" target="_blank">October 2015 shooting on High Street</a>, two shootings in November 2015 <a href="(http:/timesleader.com/news/local/494249/wilkes-barre-police-investigating-a-shooting-that-left-one-injure" target="_blank">on Stanton Street</a> and <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/493763/police-suspects-threatened-to-shoot-juveniles-during-home-invasion-shot-at-resident" target="_blank">on Park Avenue</a>, as well as an armed robbery <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/506809/police-investigating-alleged-robbery-of-store-on-hazle-street" target="_blank">on Hazle Street</a> and a stabbing on Stanton Street in February, according to the city&#8217;s crime reports.</p><p>Police officials interviewed in March said gun crime in the city tends to be linked to drug-trafficking activities, which federal officials said are amplified by the area&#8217;s location near several interstate highways.</p><p>As he stood between the weathered walls of his 62-year-old shop, Harch said he was thankful that his own store was not the target of violent crimes in recent years, although he said it was burglarized over a decade ago at a time when that was a rare occurrence.</p><p>&#8220;It&#8217;s brutal,&#8221; Harch said of the recent rise in violent crimes in the area, shaking his head. &#8220;It&#8217;s just the way things are today. People are gun happy.&#8221;</p><p>Harch&#8217;s employee, Dennis Myers, agreed that the crime has gotten worse in recent years, but that the &#8220;constant police presence&#8221; makes the neighborhood feel safer.</p><p>Aaron Hyppolite, 17, of Filbert Lane, stated that he did not feel unsafe in the area either, but was unaware of the various crimes that had occurred in the past year. Another local man, who requested not to be named, also said that he felt well-protected in the area.</p><p>Wilkes-Barre police have yet to name a suspect in Friday&#8217;s shooting, which they say is still under investigation. A police official Monday referred an inquiring Times Leader reporter to the department&#8217;s Facebook page, which contained no updated information about the case as of deadline Monday evening.</p><p><strong>Editor&#8217;s note:</strong> <em>This story has been corrected with regard to the name of the neighborhood.</em></p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Area residents stand by as police investigate a fatal shooting at 320 Stanton St. in Wilkes-Barre on Friday evening. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_Stanton_shooting_4-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Area residents stand by as police investigate a fatal shooting at 320 Stanton St. in Wilkes-Barre on Friday evening. </caption0><photoCredit0>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_TTL062816shootingfolo1-4.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">John Harch, 86, stands in his store, Electron TV and Furniture, on Monday, discussing recent violent crime in the Rolling Mill Hill section of Wilkes-Barre. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_TTL062816shootingfolo1-4.jpg</photo1><caption1>John Harch, 86, stands in his store, Electron TV and Furniture, on Monday, discussing recent violent crime in the Rolling Mill Hill section of Wilkes-Barre. </caption1><photoCredit1>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_stantonshooting-7.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">People stand by as police investigate a fatal shooting at 320 Stanton St. in Wilkes-Barre on Friday night. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/web1_stantonshooting-7.jpg</photo2><caption2>People stand by as police investigate a fatal shooting at 320 Stanton St. in Wilkes-Barre on Friday night. </caption2><photoCredit2>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Alyssa Mursch</p><p>news@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>VIOLENT CRIME</strong></p><p><strong>IN </strong><strong>ROLLING</strong></p><p><strong>MILL HILL</strong></p><p>In addition to Friday&#8217;s fatal shooting, a number of other violent crimes have been reported in Wilkes-Barre&#8217;s Rolling Mill Hill in the last six months:</p><p>&#8226; May 14, 20 Grove St. &#8212; Aggravated assault in which a gun was held to the victim&#8217;s head.</p><p>&#8226; May 14, Murray Street &#8212; Aggravated assault of unspecified means.</p><p>&#8226; March 5, Blackman Street &#8212; Stabbing.</p><p>&#8226; Feb. 10, Stanton Street &#8212; Stabbing.</p><p>&#8226; Jan. 26, Hazle Street &#8212; Armed robbery.</p><p>Source: Wilkes-Barre Police Department citywide crime reports</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach intern Alyssa Mursch at 570-991-6652.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Rolling Mill Hill residents report mixed feelings on safety after shooting