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State trooper accused of indecent assault of child

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Mayor George decrees today Ned McGinley Day

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; When asked how he felt about his preliminary hearing Friday, Keanu Pinnock referred to God as he was escorted out of the Luzerne County Courthouse in shackles.</p><p>&#8220;God is good, all the time,&#8221; he said.</p><p>Pinnock, 19, is headed to Luzerne County court on charges in connection with a <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/583692/man-killed-in-north-sherman-street-shooting-identified" target="_blank">fatal shooting of Irvando Crooks on North Sherman Street in September</a>. He will face charges of homicide, conspiracy to commit homicide and tampering with evidence after District Judge Thomas Malloy forwarded the charges to higher court.</p><p>Pinnock&#8217;s attorney, Stephen Geday, argued against the conspiracy charge, adding that testimony from witnesses was &#8220;riddled&#8221; with &#8220;assumptions and guesswork.&#8221;</p><p>He also argued against the tampering with evidence charge, but prosecutor Anthony Ross argued there was enough evidence to support all charges.</p><p>Pinnock is accused of taking part in the shooting of Irvando Crooks. Tevon Thomas is also charged with homicide in connection with the shooting.</p><p>After a short time on the run, Pinnock was <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/local/616212/u-s-marshals-arrest-wilkes-barre-homicide-suspect-in-florida" target="_blank">arrested in Florida by U.S. Marshals</a>.</p><p>At a <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/uncategorized/600884/preliminary-hearing-underway-for-man-charged-with-homicide" target="_blank">preliminary hearing in October</a>, Malloy waived all of Thomas&#8217; charges to county court.</p><p>Detective Charles Jensen testified that Crooks was shot in the left leg and left side of his torso. Luzerne County Coroner William Lisman testified the cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds, and the manner of death was homicide.</p><p>Citing witness accounts, Jensen testified Thomas and Crooks both were known to deal drugs. Crooks went to a residence on North Sherman Street where Thomas and Pinnock, along with several others, were.</p><p>Luis Vallecillo also testified that Thomas, Pinnock, and Crooks were all friends and were always together. He said the night before the alleged shooting, the trio engaged in an argument over a cellphone running out of minutes.</p><p>Jensen testified that before the alleged shooting, Thomas, Pinnock, and Crooks were involved in a dispute over whose turn it was to deal drugs. He said Thomas was upset that Crooks had a man selling drugs, which prevented Thomas from having Pinnock working that position.</p><p>Vallecillo explained the phone at the center of the argument was typically used to sell drugs, and since it had run out of minutes, sales could not be conducted.</p><p>Investigators also learned that prior to the shooting, Crooks called his mother and told her he was going to meet Thomas to collect $400.</p><p>On the night of the alleged shooting, Vallecillo went to a residence on North Sherman Street to return video games to someone.</p><p>Shortly after Vallecillo&#8217;s arrival, Crooks arrived, which Valecillo said prompted Thomas and Pinnock to get up from the kitchen table and get behind a wall. Vallecillo noted that Crooks was usually friendly and greeted everyone in the room. That night, according to Vallecillo, was different. He said Crooks immediately approached Thomas and Pinnock, and told the duo he wanted his money or his firearms.</p><p>Jensen testified that during the course of the investigation, it was determined that Crooks would normally supply firearms to others. Jensen also testified that witnesses did not see Crooks with a gun during the altercation.</p><p>Thomas then allegedly pulled out a handgun, chambered a round, pointed it at Crooks and said, &#8220;say I won&#8217;t do it, say I won&#8217;t do it.&#8221;</p><p>After a struggle that took both men to the ground, witnesses allegedly saw Thomas fire one shot. Pinnock was reportedly struck in the face with the gun during the struggle. Witnesses then say Pinnock fired two shots at Crooks from behind, but it is unknown who fired the shot that allegedly killed Crooks.</p><p><ins>Vallecillo said that during the physical scuffle, he was sitting at a table and decided to move out of fear of being hit a by a bullet.</ins></p><p><ins>Vallecillo then briefly went upstairs before leaving the residence, where he said he saw Crooks lying on the ground across the street.</ins></p><p><ins>&#8220;I wanted to get out of there,&#8221; he said.</ins></p><p><ins>When asked why he didn&#8217;t call 911, Vallecillo said he was fearful of his life.</ins></p><p><ins>&#8220;Two individuals are armed and inside the house,&#8221; he said. &#8220;They already shot somebody, why would they not shoot me?&#8221;</ins></p><p>Jensen also testified that witnesses did not see Crooks with a gun during the altercation.</p><p>According to Vallecillo&#8217;s testimony, Pinnock contacted him several hours after the shooting and had him drive him from McDonald&#8217;s on Wilkes-Barre Boulevard back to North Sherman Street to retrieve the firearms.</p><p>Jensen said that an employee of the fast food store knew Pinnock and let him use a cellphone to call Vallecillo. The employee reportedly heard Pinnock say &#8220;I caught a cotty&#8221;, which Jensen said is slang terminology Crips members use to indicate indicate they had shot or killed someone.</p><p>He recalled no conversation happening between the two during the drive.</p><p>When asked why he complied with Pinnock&#8217;s request, Vallecillo once again said was scared.</p><p>&#8220;They (Thomas and Pinnock) knew where I lived,&#8221; he said.</p><p>At Thomas&#8217; preliminary hearing, Vallecillo testified that in the months leading up to the alleged shooting, Thomas, Pinnock and several others moved into his residence after mutual friends introduced them. Vallecillo also testified &#8220;meetings&#8221; would take place with numerous people, and he suspected it to be drug related after seeing large amounts of cash.</p><p><ins>When asked why he did not contact police, Vallecillo said he was fearful of retaliation. He also testified that Thomas and Pinnock claimed to be with the Crips gang.</ins></p><p><ins>Investigators have also determined Thomas and Pinnock are connected with the Crips gang, according to the criminal complaint.</ins></p><p><ins>The criminal complaint also indicates Thomas and Pinnock were the target of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigations. Police said the FBI conducted an investigation into human trafficking, drug dealing, and illegal weapons possession and purchasing. Several other suspects were included in that investigation, including Crooks and Vallecillo.</ins></p><p><ins>Police also said Thomas and Pinnock have tried to contact potential witnesses after the alleged homicide.</ins></p><p>A formal arraignment date for Pinnock has not yet been set.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Keanu Pinnock, 19, is escorted out of the Luzerne County courthouse after a preliminary hearing Friday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/web1_TTL020417Keanu-Pinnock1-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Keanu Pinnock, 19, is escorted out of the Luzerne County courthouse after a preliminary hearing Friday. </caption0><photoCredit0>Aimee Dilger|Times Leader </photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Travis Kellar</p><p>tkellar@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p>Video</p><p>For a video of this story, go to tinyurl.com/j8xadzj</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Travis Kellar at 570-991-6389 or on Twitter @TLNews</p></shirttailMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><videoMeta><p><table style="border:none;width:98%;" class="mceItemTable"><tbody><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoID:</td><td id="videoid" style="width:50em;font-size:90%;"> bE67nXPy3dM</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">VideoType:</td><td id="videotype" style="font-size:90%;"> YOUTUBE</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">URL:</td><td id="url" style="font-size:90%;"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bE67nXPy3dM</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Embed String:</td><td id="videoembedstring" style="font-size:90%;"> &lt;iframe width=&#8221;560&#8221; height=&#8221;315&#8221; src=&#8221;https://www.youtube.com/embed/bE67nXPy3dM&#8221; frameborder=&#8221;0&#8221; allowfullscreen&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Caption:</td><td id="videocaption" style="font-size:90%;"> Keanu Pinnock leaves the Luzerne County Courthouse after his preliminary hearing Friday.</p><p></td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Credit:</td><td id="videocredit" style="font-size:90%;"> Travis Kellar | Times Leader</p><p></td></tr><tr><td style="font-weight:bold;font-size:100%;vertical-align:top;text-align:right;border:none;">Video Position:</td><td id="videoposition" style="font-size:90%;"> </td></tr></tbody></table></p><p style="margin-top:10px;font-size:70%;color:#555;">(use the &#8220;for files&#8230;&#8221; link above to associate attached files with this source)</p></videoMeta></div>

Man charged with fatal September shooting headed to court