A tragic event unfolded in a home on the 1200 block of Locust Street in Reading, Pennsylvania, leading to the death of 20-year-old Selena Zavala-Hernandes. On the afternoon of February 17, 2025, neighbors heard gunshots and promptly alerted the police. When officers arrived at the residence around 2:15 p.m., they discovered a heartbreaking scene.
Inside the home, Zavala-Hernandes was found deceased alongside her boyfriend, Jesus Peñaloza Cruz.
The Berks County District Attorney's Office later confirmed that the incident was a murder-suicide. Investigators determined that Peñaloza Cruz shot and killed Zavala-Hernandes before turning the gun on himself. The couple's two-month-old infant was also a victim of the shooting.
The infant was found critically injured but alive and was quickly airlifted to a hospital in Philadelphia for emergency medical care. The child was last reported to be in stable but critical condition. The investigation by the Berks County District Attorney's Office is ongoing as they continue to piece together the circumstances that led to this violent act of domestic violence.
