What to Know
- Alberto Leon Jr., 38, of Reading, was arrested after he allegedly fled a traffic stop and ran into a home, leading to a barricade situation.
- Police opened fire at Leon prior to the chase. An officer claimed Leon reached for a gun.
- Leon was a person of interest in a robbery prior to the incident, according to investigators.
An armed man was in custody after barricading himself inside a Berks County home following a police-involved shooting and chase, officials said.
On Wednesday around 3 a.m., officers were on the 1100 block of Cotton Street in Reading, Pennsylvania, investigating three prior robberies that had occurred in the area over the past few days.
An officer then spotted a man, identified as Alberto Leon, Jr., 38, of Reading, driving a 2001 GMC Yukon. Leon was a person of interest in one of the robberies, according to police.
The officers followed Leon who then committed a traffic violation, investigators said. As the officers stopped his vehicle and approached, Leon allegedly moved toward the center console of the SUV. One of the officers said they then noticed Leon was in possession of a gun. The officer fired two shots into the vehicle as Leon drove off, police said.
The officers chased after Leon who abandoned his vehicle on the 500 block of North 10th Street and ran into a first-floor apartment, according to investigators.
Reading officers secured the location until members of the Pennsylvania State Police Special Emergency Response Team arrived. Leon was then apprehended and taken into custody around 6:45 a.m., police said.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
Leon is charged with persons not to possess, use, manufacture, control, sell or transfer firearms and terroristic threats.
Leon also had a criminal history prior to Wednesday's incident, police said. He was charged with possession with intent to deliver cocaine in 2010, fleeing or attempting to elude police officers in 2003 and manufacturing of a controlled substance in 1999.
Berks County detectives continue to investigate the police-involved shooting. No one was injured during the incident.
