Police: Easton shooting leads to lockdown at Lafayette College

A 22-year-old Phillipsburg man has been arrested and charged with attempted homicide after police say he shot a woman in Easton, an incident that prompted a temporary lockdown of Lafayette College Friday night.

Easton police say Twyleak Sexton was taken into custody late Friday night in a residence on Anderson Street in Phillipsburg. Police had been searching for Sexton in the area of North 3rd Street and Bushkill Drive after a 22-year-old woman was found shot at around 5:30 p.m.

Police said Sexton and the woman, who was taken to an area hospital and is expected to survive, had a previous relationship and that Sexton had targeted her.

Lafayette College was placed on lockdown early Friday evening as Easton police and Lafayette police searched the area. A handgun was located along the Bushkill Creek which is suspected to be the handgun used in the incident, police said.

The college’s public safety department announced the lockdown in a tweet just after 6 p.m. after an initial report of shots fired near Pearl Street in the city.

Around 6:50 p.m., another tweet from the college said that Easton police were tracking the person south along the Delaware River, and reminded people on campus to shelter in place.

In a tweet that went out at 7:24 p.m. public safety announced that they believed the person fled from the campus and while the investigation was ongoing, the lockdown was lifted.

Sexton is facing charges in New Jersey and Easton police are expected to charge him with criminal attempt to commit homicide, two counts of aggravated assault, illegal possession of a firearm and two counts of recklessly endangering another person. Sexton will be extradited back to Easton at a later date, police said.