Man charged in fatal shooting of Allentown teen

A 21-year-old man faces charges alleging he killed an 18-year-old in a shooting last week in Allentown, according to officials.

On Tuesday morning, Lehigh County detectives charged Ethan Nicholas Bastien with homicide, alleging he fatally shot Sian Cartagena on Oct. 2. She died from her injuries two days later.

Lehigh County First Assistant District Attorney Gavin Holihan said Bastien had previously been charged with attempted homicide and aggravated assault in the shooting.

Cartagena, of Allentown, was shot about 5:40 a.m. in a home in the 2000 block of West Green Street, according to the Lehigh County coroner’s office.

She died from her injuries Wednesday afternoon at Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest.

Bastien, of Allentown, was arraigned on his initial charges the night of Oct. 2, and has been in Lehigh County Jail without bail since then.

He was arraigned on his latest charges Tuesday morning.

The criminal complaint states Bastien called 911 that morning and told authorities that Cartagena took his gun and shot herself. When police arrived, they found Cartagena bleeding from the back of her head, laying on a mattress on the second floor.

Bastien told police he had not seen the shooting, but only heard the gun go off, according to court documents. Police found a bullet hole in the window of the bedroom, officials said.

When asked about Cartagena’s injury, police said Bastien could not explain how Cartagena shot herself in the back of her head.

Authorities got a warrant for Bastien’s clothing, and found gunshot residue on the right sleeve of his sweatshirt, court documents allege.

Cartagena’s family has set up a GoFundMe page to help raise funds for her funeral expenses. Her mother wrote on the page that her daughter was a victim of an abusive relationship.

“I want to give her the best service and arrangements, because my baby didn’t deserve this cruel and inhumane act to have taken her life away,” the post reads in part.

As of Tuesday afternoon, the campaign had raised nearly $5,000 of its $15,000 goal.

Cartagena is the 16th person to be killed by homicide in Allentown this year.