The suspect in the double-fatal homicide of a mother and 4-month-old son in Hartford has been caught after a nationwide search, officials said.
On Saturday, the suspect in the shooting, 23-year-old Lance Morales, was located by members of the U.S. Marshalls Violent Fugitive Task Force in Puerto Rico and was taken into custody, according to a press release from the Hartford Police Department. Morales is facing multiple charges including criminal possession of a firearm, first-degree assault, first-degree criminal attempt to commit assault, two counts of murder and murder with special circumstances.
He is being held on a $3 million bond and is awaiting extradition back to the United States.
The arrest comes after Hartford police officers were dispatched to Hartford Hospital on Nov. 19, on a report of multiple gunshot victims. Hartford Police Lt. Aaron Boisvert said three victims were suffering from gunshot wounds, including 20-year-old Jessiah Mercado of Springfield, Mass. and her 4-month-old son, identified as Messiah Diaz, both of whom were pronounced dead at the hospital. The third victim, a man in his 20s, was suffering from a non-life-threatening gunshot wound, according to Boisvert.
Police believe that Morales opened fire in the area of 380 New Britain Ave. on Tuesday afternoon and shot the victims while they inside a vehicle, after Morales pulled alongside the vehicle and opened fire.
The Hartford Police Major Crimes and Crime Scene Divisions continues to investigate.
Stephen Underwood can be reached at [email protected]
