Court Docs: Schuylkill County Man Fired Into a Crowd of People on Bloomsburg Street

Court documents reveal that Samuel Evans allegedly fired several rounds into a crowd of people, striking one, last weekend.

Evans, 19, was arrested Thursday at his home in Mahanoy City. He’s been charged with attempted homicide and various other charges and is being held on $500,000 bail at Columbia County Prison.

According to affidavit filed in District Court by Bloomsburg Police, officers were called to the 300 block of Chestnut Ave. and East St. around 11:30 p.m. on Nov. 1, after multiple gunshots were reported.

When officers arrived, they found a 16-year-old victim on E. 4th St. suffering from a gunshot wound to the upper hip area. He was taken to Geisinger Medical Center for treatment.

Police say the victim was walking with a group of about ten people that night. Another group of individuals was walking in front of and toward their group, the victim told police.

The victim said that Evans – whom he didn’t identify by name – was wearing a mask and walking alone when he merged in with a group to make it appear as though he was walking with them.

He said Evans then separated himself from the group, pulled out a gun and began shooting, causing everyone in his group to take off running.

The victim and another member of the group ran south on East St. after the shots rang out. The second person told police he helped carry the wounded teen toward his vehicle before officers arrived.

A witness in the area told police he heard people talking outside just before the gunfire. He saw a man standing on the sidewalk raise a handgun and fire toward a group of people before running away.

The witness described the shooter as a white or possibly Hispanic male with facial hair, wearing a black jacket, red sweatpants, and a black beanie-style hat.

Shell casings found near 339 East St. were collected as evidence.

Investigators say several interviews and pieces of evidence began to point to one suspect — Evans.

A confidential source told police that family members who were present during the shooting identified Evans as the gunman but were afraid to speak publicly out of fear of retaliation.

The source also said they believed the victim knew Evans and thought he recognized him before the shooting began.

Police later spoke with another witness who said he follows Evans on Instagram. That witness told investigators he had seen Evans wearing the same outfit the shooter was described as having on the night of the attack.

Video surveillance from several locations helped police track the shooter’s movements. One clip shows a man in dark clothing and red pants running north on the west sidewalk of East St.

Minutes later, a person wearing the same clothing is seen getting into a red sedan parked nearby. The car, which had tinted windows and a rear spoiler, drives away from the area, taking a route that circles back toward East Street before continuing north on Lightstreet Rd.

Additional footage from a nearby business reportedly shows the same red sedan parked at the scene earlier that evening. Police say a man matching the shooter’s description is seen exiting the car and walking into an apartment connected to that business.

Bloomsburg Police posted the case on its Crime Watch page, where officers say they received several anonymous tips naming Evans as the suspect and linking his vehicle to the crime.

Investigators later confirmed that Evans had previous police contact and owned a 2019 Mazda 3 registered in his name — the same make and model seen in surveillance videos. Officers also reviewed photos on Evans’s Facebook page that show him posing with his car, which police say matches the one used by the shooter.

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