Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Arrest made in homicide of Pottstown man
DA Hogan: Good work by Coatesville Police Department, Chester County Detectives
COATESVILLE >> Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan announced Monday an arrest in the homicide of a homeless Pottstown man who was shot 11 times.
Coatesville police and Chester County Detectives arrested Lenn “Butter” Tucker on Friday night for the Aug. 26 murder of Alex Hartzell, 24, of Pottstown, Hogan said. The alleged charges include first-degree murder, possessing an instrument of crime, being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and related charges, according to the police report and online criminal docket. Tucker, 25, with residences listed in Coatesville and Philadelphia, was remanded to Chester County Prison and denied bail because of his alleged charges.
Hartzell was shot 11 times in the body and head, according to the criminal report.
“The victim’s family expressed relief that an arrest had been made and gratitude for the hard work of law enforcement,” Hogan said.
The criminal investigation involved gathering video recordings from multiple sources, reconstructing the event based on crime scene forensics and the recording, in additional to interviewing witnesses.
“This was good work by the Coatesville Police Department and the Chester County Detectives,” Hogan said. “They combined expert use of technology with oldfashioned police work of interviewing everybody with any connection to the area.”
Coatesville police responded to a 911 call of a report of shots fired in the area of North Seventh Avenue and Diamond Street on Aug. 26 at about 6:05 a.m. Upon a search of the area, Coatesville police said they found a deceased white man, later identified as Hartzell, on the ground in the backyard of a residence in the 600 block of East Chestnut Street. Hartzell occasionally resided in shelters in Coatesville, according to the investigators.
One witness told police they were in the area of North Seventh Avenue and Diamond Street at the time of the shooting and identified Tucker as the alleged shooter, according to the criminal report. A second witness told police that Tucker allegedly sold drugs in the area of Seventh Avenue and Diamond Street, but had not returned to the area since the murder, according to the report.
Detectives reviewed video from that intersection and said they observed Tucker and Hartzell meet there. Hartzell left the area and walked west on Diamond Street to East Chestnut Street, with Tucker reportedly following him. When Hartzell turned to face Tucker, detectives said Tucker allegedly shot Hartzell numerous times at close range. When Hartzell was on the ground, detectives said Tucker reportedly stood directly over Hartzell and shot him several more times. Tucker reportedly left the scene and went west on Diamond Street toward Sixth Avenue, according to the report. It was un-
known if the two men knew each other.
Detectives said they interviewed Tucker on Sept. 9 at which time he reportedly admitted to them that he was in the area of Seventh Avenue and Diamond Street on Aug. 26. Tucker reportedly told the detectives that he followed Hartzell that day on Diamond Street, according to the detectives. Tucker reportedly told police that four other people were present in the backyard of a residence in the 600 block of East Chestnut Street when the shooting occurred there. However, police said that the video recording shows only two people there at that time.
That was the third homicide in the city this year. City police made arrests in both of the prior homicides.
Police ask that anyone with additional information about this homicide contact Coatesville Detective Kevin Campbell at the Coatesville Police Department at 610-384-2300 or Chester County Detective Jim Ciliberto at 610-3446866. Visit Ginger Rae Dunbar’s blog at FirefighterGinger.blogspot.com.