IS HE IN DELCO?
POLICE SAY RED PICKUP SEEN ON ROUTE 352 HEADED INTO DELCO
WEST GOSHEN » The hunt for the driver of a red pickup truck who fatally shot a young Chester County woman in a road rage incident may be leading investigators to Delaware County.
Police in West Goshen Township – who have been inundated with tips from across the nation - Saturday afternoon released a new surveillance image of the red pickup truck and indicated it may have been seen heading south on Route 352 (Middletown Road) toward Delaware County minutes after the shooting.
No arrests have been made, and no suspects have been identified. The red pickup truck has not yet been located.
Bianca Nikol Roberson, 18, was fatally shot during what police described as a “catand-mouse” encounter with another motorist while driving southbound on Route 100 Wednesday night. The driver of a red pickup truck took out a gun and fatally shot the recent Rustin High School grad.
West Goshen police Saturday said they have received more than 1,000 tips in the case that has captured the attention of the nation.
“It was senseless, brutal and tragic,” said Joseph Gleason, West Goshen police chief. “He took a beautiful young lady of 18 years of age in the prime of her life getting ready to go off to college, and for reasons that are incomprehensible to me, the family is now planning for her funeral instead of a going-away party for college.”
Police investigators and the Chester County District Attorney’s office have been carefully interviewing witnesses and checking out tips.
District Attorney Tom Hogan said investigators believe the driver may be from the area because of “where they were driving and that time of day, and where we could track the truck going.”
West Goshen police said they have received tips from every corner of the country.
At a Friday press briefing, police released a sketch of the suspected driver of the pickup, a man believed to be in his mid 20s to 30s, with a medium build, and blonde or light brown hair.
Roberson recently graduated from Rustin High School in West Chester and was expected to head to Jacksonville University to start college in the fall.
She had been at a local shopping center buying clothes and was driving home at the time of the incident.
Police theorize she and the driver of the pickup truck started jockeying for position where Route 100 narrows to a single lane.
Levante Brewing Co. in West Chester is donating proceeds from all Bianco beer sales to the family of Bianca Roberson – to help support their GoFundMe campaign.
Witnesses described the shooter as a white man of medium build with blond or light brown hair, in his mid-20s to early 30s, police said. A composite sketch of the suspect was widely distributed.
Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania Crimestoppers organization has offered a $5,000 reward and police are pulling over red pickup trucks that even vaguely match the description.
Roberson was a recent Rustin High School graduate who was preparing to head off for college. Her father, Rodney Roberson, said the family was excited that his daughter was going away to Jacksonville University in Florida to study psychology. She had set her sights on a FBI career.
“She was everything to me, everything, everything,” Roberson said. “I can’t imagine anybody wanting to hurt my daughter. She never hurt anyone. She made you laugh.”
Roberson’s aunt, Mari Hatton-Haynes, said that her niece enjoyed drawing and was a “happy-go-lucky person who enjoyed life.”
“The family wants the public to know that if they know this person, come forward,” she said. “Clear your conscience. If this happened to your child you would want the same. There’s not closure until then.”
Several hundred people attended a vigil to honor Roberson’s memory in the back yard of her family’s home Friday night.
Neighbor Sean Endrey was one of the hundreds holding a candle as darkness fell.
“It’s important for us to not only show support but show she lives on,” he said. “It’s good for us, but the purpose is to show our support and connection to her no matter how big or small.”
This was the second child the Roberson family has lost. An older brother passed away several years ago from a heart condition.
“Knowing what they’re going through, not once but twice,” lamented family friend Steve Lyons.
Rodney Roberson told the group that everyone knows his daughter was not a bad person.
“We hope this guy is caught to bring justice for our daughter,” Rodney Roberson told the throng. “It touches our hearts that you all came out to support our daughter.”
“It was senseless, brutal and tragic. He took a beautiful young lady of 18 years of age in the prime of her life getting ready to go off to college, and for reasons that are incomprehensible to me, the family is now planning for her funeral instead of a going-away party for college.”
— Joseph Gleason, West Goshen police chief