In the early morning hours of September 23, 2023, the life of 58-year-old Orlando Ibanez was tragically cut short in an apartment located in the 500 block of West Allen Street in Allentown, Pennsylvania. At approximately 1:45 a.m., Ibanez was fatally shot. Emergency responders rushed him to Lehigh Valley Hospital-Cedar Crest, but he was pronounced dead at 2:20 a.m. The Lehigh County Coroner's Office later ruled his death a homicide.
An extensive investigation into the death of the male victim led authorities to identify 30-year-old Evander Terrel Thompson, also a resident of Allentown, as the primary suspect. Surveillance footage played a crucial role in the investigation, capturing Thompson's movements as he walked from his own residence to the apartment building where the shooting occurred and then leaving shortly after. Further evidence was uncovered when investigators found a text message Thompson sent to his girlfriend just three minutes after leaving the scene, which starkly stated, 'he dead.'
The investigation culminated in a significant breakthrough on May 15, 2024, when police were searching Thompson's home on North Nagle Street in connection with a separate case. During this search, they discovered the firearm believed to have been used in Ibanez's shooting. Subsequently, on August 2, 2024, Evander Terrel Thompson was charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault, and firearms offenses. At the time the charges were filed, he was already incarcerated at the Lehigh County Jail on unrelated matters and is being held without bail.
