A 25-year-old Indian national living unlawfully in the United States has pleaded guilty to a firearms offence after police recovered multiple loaded weapons near the scene of a shooting in Pennsylvania.
Harshpreet Singh entered the plea before US District Judge Catherine Henry, admitting to possession of a firearm while being in the country illegally, according to an announcement by US Attorney David Metcalf. He had been charged by indictment in October last year.
The case stems from an incident in the early hours of 28 August 2024, when state troopers and local police responded to reports of a home invasion and shooting at a residence in Bethel Township.
At about the same time, emergency dispatchers received a separate call about a gunshot victim at a nearby petrol station, less than a kilometre away.
Officers arriving at the station found a man, identified in court documents as A.S., suffering from a gunshot wound to the torso inside a vehicle. Singh and another individual were also in the car at the time. The injured man was taken to hospital for treatment.
Police searches in the surrounding area uncovered two loaded firearms in a gravel lot opposite the petrol station: a Taurus 9mm pistol and a privately made gun without a serial number. A third weapon, a Glock .40 calibre pistol, was located in the yard of the home where the alleged break-in had been reported.
Forensic analysis later identified a DNA mixture from multiple contributors on the recovered weapons, with Singh included as a potential match, investigators said in court filings.
Singh is due to be sentenced on 9 July. He faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, along with a possible term of supervised release and a substantial fine.
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