WATSONTOWN, Pa. — State police had a section of Route 44 in Delaware Township near Watsontown shut down while troopers investigated a deadly shooting. The coroner was called to the scene around 10 p.m. on Friday.
State police shot and killed 70-year-old William Kradlak. Troopers say they were called to a home after a 911 hang-up call. As police arrived, Kradlak came out of his home and started firing. Troopers shot back. Kradlak was killed.
Neighbors told Newswatch 16 they heard quite the commotion.
Neighbors said they saw an ambulance on Route 44 around 4 p.m. About five minutes later, neighbors heard four to five gunshots.
"I was really nervous because at first, it almost sounded like a car backfiring, so I wasn't sure what it was. Then I realized it was the gunshots. Obviously, there were the police and everything. So they were already on scene," Jess Hollar of Watsontown said.
Newswatch 16 was there as a state police forensics unit and reconstruction unit looked over the scene. The troopers involved are on administrative leave, pending the outcome of the investigation.
The Northumberland County District Attorney's office is also investigating the shooting.