UPPER MACUNGIE TWP., Pa. A man shot dead a gas-pumping truck and shot dead another driver at a Wawa in the Upper Macungie Township on Wednesday.
Authorities are investigating the series of events that led to the seemingly random shooting early Wednesday morning, ending with the suspect turning the gun on himself, officials said.
It began with a meeting on Route 22 between Route 309 and Cedar Crest Boulevard, District Attorney Jim Martin said at a news conference Wednesday morning.
FULL VIDEO: Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin and other officials discuss a shooting that killed two people, including the suspect.
Two vehicles had a “meeting” before 10 p.m., and one of the drivers fired a shot at the other vehicle, Martin said.
The woman who was driving the vehicle did not realize that her car had been hit when she stopped at Wawa on Schantz Road, of Route 100, for food that Martin said. She was not injured.
The driver of the other vehicle, which according to the authority apparently fired the shot, then pulled into the same Wawa parking lot and drove around the building, Martin said. He then shot a driver who was shooting into a Jeep and shot a tractor-trailer driver who was out of his cabin to pump gas, Martin said.
The truck driver succumbed to his injuries, Martin said.
The coroner in Lehigh County identified the truck driver as Ramon Ramirez, 31. He died of a gunshot wound to the body, the coroner said.
The Jeep driver was treated in hospital and his injuries do not appear to be life-threatening, the DA said.
The suspected shooter took off on foot and ran about a quarter of a mile off Route 100 before apparently committing suicide, Martin said. The police scene spreads across Route 100 to in front of the Brookside Children’s Early Education Center. The center was closed at the time.
The office of the coroner in Lehigh County has declared the suspect dead. He was identified as Za Uk Lian, 45, of South Whitehall. His death was decided as suicide.
Investigators are trying to find a motive for the shooting.
“It appears that the three shooting incidents I have described appear unclear and unrelated,” Martin said.
Martin credited a fast-thinking Wawa employee for helping keep others safe. The employee was taking out rubbish when he heard the gunshots, so he ushered two people into the parking lot and warned workers and customers inside, Martin said. Employees quickly locked the doors to the store and everyone inside hid in their place, Martin said.
A state police officer was also injured in the incident. He was hit by a vehicle while assisting with traffic control, state police said. He was treated in hospital and has since been released.
Investigators centered around the vehicles in the parking lot before towing the bullet-driven vehicles away later Wednesday morning.
‘Serious police incident’ in Wawa in Upper Macungie