Police: Woman, boyfriend shoot brother for revenge
Apr. 1—A man shot repeatedly during a drive-by shooting last month was targeted by his own sister in retaliation for stabbing her boyfriend during an altercation two years ago, police said.
Starneesha M. Richardson-Gunter, 31, and her boyfriend, Marquis S. Ford, 36, both of Wilkes-Barre, are facing aggravated assault charges alleging they shot Richardson-Gunter's brother, Johnny Gunter, 31, of Nanticoke, after a court appearance last month.
Police said Gunter appeared in Luzerne County Central Court the afternoon of March 10 to face aggravated assault charges alleging he stabbed Ford at a home in Nanticoke in October 2019.
Ford, however, did not show up and the hearing was continued.
Gunter, who is free on $10,000 unsecured bail, took an Uber to 11 Lynch Lane, and a witness told police she believed Ford and Richardson-Gunter followed him there in Richardson-Gunter's 2019 Hyundai Tucson, according to the complaint.
Gunter spoke with some neighbors for a few minutes before the Tucson pulled up and stopped suddenly next to him, police said.
The passenger-side window then "exploded" as the driver, who police identified as Ford, opened fire with a 9mm pistol, according to the complaint.
Gunter was shot in the abdomen, right forearm and right thigh before his sister interrupted Ford, police said.
Police arrived to find Gunter lying on a sidewalk, with five 9mm shell casings strewn nearby.
Gunter was taken to Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center where he underwent emergency surgery for his injuries.
Police charged Richardson-Gunter and Ford with aggravated assault and criminal conspiracy.
Ford, who is additionally charged with criminal mischief, remains wanted on a warrant, according to court records.
Richardson-Gunter was arrested and arraigned Thursday morning by Magisterial District Judge Joseph D. Zola, who denied bail after deeming her a danger to society and a flight risk.
She was being held at the Luzerne County Correctional Facility with a preliminary hearing set for April 12.
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