Man wounded by gunfire outside Chacko’s faces charges

WILKES-BARRE — A man who suffered gunshot wounds in the parking lot of Chacko’s Family Bowling Center last week is now facing charges after police say he opened fire following an altercation.

Shalik Keyon Aiken, 25, of Park Avenue, sustained gunshot wounds and fled the scene to his apartment, where he was picked up by an ambulance and taken to an area hospital following the Feb. 2 incident.

An affidavit filed in the case did not state who fired the shots that struck Aiken.

Police said Aiken was wounded by gunfire in the parking lot after a fight broke out inside the bowling alley around 9:15 p.m. The two groups involved in the fight were known to each other, police said.

While Aiken initially told officers he never fired a shot, investigation revealed otherwise, police say.

Detectives expect damages from stray rounds to vehicles in the parking lot to exceed “tens of thousands” of dollars. A total a seven vehicles suffered bullet damage.

Aiken faces felony aggravated assault and criminal mischief charges as well as misdemeanor terroristic threat, reckless endangerment, false reports and simple assault charges.

Fight and shots fired

According to the criminal complaint:

Following reports of the shooting on the night of Feb. 2, Aiken was located at his Park Avenue address with gunshot wounds to his finger, hand, left thigh and right leg, in connection with the parking lot shooting outside Chacko’s at 195 N. Wilkes-Barre Blvd.

Aiken told police he was attempting to defuse an argument inside the bowling alley but decided to leave when he realized things were getting out of hand, claiming he was struck by gunfire as he walked to his black Volkswagen Jetta.

Aiken fled the scene to Park Avenue, where he told police he never fired a weapon, not even in self-defense.

Around the same time police stopped a white Nissan near Kidder Street after the driver refused to pull over when an officer flashed their lights. The vehicle had been reported as fleeing the scene at Chacko’s. Three people — Armond Hobson, Wendell Freeman and Dennis Rowell — were detained.

Police previously said the driver, Armand Hobson of Kingston, was arrested and charged. Rowell, 31, of Brooklyn, N.Y., currently residing in Edwardsville, was arrested on an outstanding warrant, police said. Hobson, 25, was arraigned by District Judge Brian Tupper on charges of fleeing police, resisting arrest, recklessly endangering another person and several traffic violations.

Upon reviewing Chacko’s surveillance footage, police ascertained that Hobson, Freeman, Rowell, and another man later identified as Dontae ‘Tae’ Chalmers entered Chacko’s and approached Aiken and his group, and a war of words ensued.

The fight turned physical when Chalmers and a male in Aiken’s group, Branden DelCastillo, came to blows, police said. The altercation then spilled out into the parking lot.

Freeman and Rowell admitted to participating in the verbal and physical altercation, police said. Both men said they ran for cover once they heard gunfire in the parking lot.

Rowell said the shooter was a male dressed in all black with “bling” in his teeth, driving a dark colored vehicle. The shooter emerged from the car brandishing two handguns and said, “Y’all not going to make it out of here tonight,” before he started shooting in the direction of the front entrance.

Aiken admitted to being the man in dark clothing after being shown the footage.

Bloody black garments were also recovered from his residence and Geisinger Wyoming Valley, where he was treated. There was also blood pooling in his vehicle when police found him on Park Avenue. When Aiken was interviewed after having his wounds treated, he had visible cosmetic enhancements to his teeth which made them “glisten and sparkle,” police said.

Subsequent traffic stop

The affidavit continues:

The following day, Feb. 3, an Adult Probation officer went to Aiken’s residence for a home visit in connection to a prior conviction of terroristic threats. While at the residence, a vehicle owned by Aiken’s mother pulled up to the property. Aiken exited the vehicle, and upon seeing the probation officer, reentered and the vehicle left the scene, later to be stopped on Blackman Street.

A detective approached and began speaking with Aiken, who was a passenger, who avoided all eye contact and refused to speak. Eventually, he admitted there were two handguns under his passenger seat. The driver, Marissa Wilcox, gave permission to search the car, which yielded a Ruger LC9 and a Smith & Wesson 9mm. Both weapons were loaded. Aiken did not have a permit for his weapons and was found in violation of his probation.

Under questioning, Aiken admitted to firing shots from the Ruger in self-defense outside Chacko’s on Feb. 2, which also happened to be his 25th birthday, police said. Upon further questioning, he said he fired three shots in the air and did not see anyone else brandishing a weapon, but that he saw “everyone reaching.”

When presented with ballistic evidence, Aiken would not admit he fired his weapon into the air. He told the detectives to check the video. He was unable to identify who was shooting at him, claiming he was “extremely intoxicated,” police said.

However, he later maintained that he was shot at first and acting in self-defense. The affidavit does not address how Aiken was wounded.

Wilcox admitted to the Ruger being hers, and removed the gun from the Park Avenue residence after Aiken was wounded. No charges had been filed against Wilcox as of Thursday.

Aiken was arraigned Thursday morning before District Judge Thomas F. Malloy Sr. and committed to the Luzerne County Correctional Facility for lack of $50,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is set for Feb. 23 at 10:30 a.m.