LUZERNE COUNTY, Pa. — The shooting death of a teenage girl over the weekend in Luzerne County is being called a case of criminal homicide.
Alan Meyers, 17, of Black Creek Township, is locked up on charges including criminal homicide. He's accused of killing a 17-year-old girl early Saturday morning at her home outside Hazleton.
A small bouquet of roses sits on the stoop of a home in Butler Township where police say a 17-year-old girl was shot and killed.
An aunt of the victim tells Newswatch 16 that girl is Kassadey Matulevich and that she would have started her senior year at Hazleton Area High School next month. She was a member of the varsity cheerleading team.
Hazleton Area School District Superintendent Brian Uplinger tells Newswatch 16 in a statement the district is "devastated by the loss of one of our students. I cannot adequately express in words the giant hole that is left by losing a student."
Grief counselors were available at the high school to the cheerleading team on Saturday and the rest of the student body on Monday.
Police believe Alan Meyers, 17, of Black Creek Township, is responsible for her death.
Investigators say Meyers went to her home in Butler Township early Saturday morning and shot her in the head, later taking off, dumping the weapon, and hiding his car in a friend's garage.
Police caught up with Meyers at the Dorrance rest stop on Interstate 81, where they believe Meyers was dropped off by friends. Police said he had cut his hair and had changed his clothes to try to alter his appearance.
A GoFundMe account by the victim's aunt has been set up for funeral expenses.
Meyers remains locked up and will be tried as an adult, according to the Luzerne County district attorney.
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