ALLENTOWN, PA — Two men have been charged with attempted murder and related offenses following a shooting early Wednesday morning that left a man critically injured, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office and the Allentown Police Department.
Christopher Joel Colon, 32, and John Brace, 32, both of Allentown, were arrested after allegedly shooting Jorge Alicea Jr. multiple times with a shotgun outside a home on the 400 block of North Jordan Street. Police say the shooting occurred around 1:30 a.m.
Colon faces additional charges, including aggravated assault and tampering with physical evidence. Both men were arraigned Wednesday night and committed to Lehigh County Jail in lieu of $500,000 cash bail each. They are scheduled for preliminary hearings on Dec. 6 in Lehigh County Central Court.
Video evidence reportedly shows Alicea walking across a porch while looking at his cellphone when multiple shotgun rounds were fired at him from the passenger side of a nearby double-parked vehicle. The suspects fled the scene, but city-owned cameras tracked their vehicle, leading police to conduct a felony stop approximately 35 minutes later. A spent shotgun shell was visible inside the vehicle, and further investigation led officers to recover a black PAS ARMS shotgun discarded in a drain grate along the suspects’ route.
Alicea was transported to a hospital by Allentown EMS for immediate surgery and remains in critical condition. Police say evidence, including shotgun shell casings and projectiles, linked Colon and Brace to the shooting.
The case is being handled by Deputy District Attorney Ashley Troxell and Chief Deputy District Attorney Edward Muir.
