Man arrested after admitting to firing weapon in Bellefonte neighborhood, police say
A man was charged Wednesday after he admitted to firing six shots in a populated residential area, borough police wrote in a charging document.
Elias Quintanilla, 39, told a detective he fired three shots into a deck and two shots into the front wall of a home along East Lamb Street, police wrote in an affidavit of probable cause. One round is unaccounted for.
Police were dispatched about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday. Investigators found a .380 handgun in Quintanilla’s room, which he said he bought for protection.
Quintanilla, of El Salvador, was not legally allowed to possess the firearm, police wrote. No defense lawyer was listed.
The Centre County District Attorney’s detective and the Spring Township Police Department assisted the Bellefonte Borough Police Department on the scene. The Centre County Emergency Communications Center made it possible for an interpreter to be used for investigators to communicate with 11 people who were temporarily detained through the investigation, Bellefonte police chief Shawn Weaver wrote in a press release.
Quintanilla was charged with one felony count each of discharge of a firearm into an occupied structure and prohibited possession of a firearm, as well as a misdemeanor count of recklessly endangering another person. He was also charged with a summary count of disorderly conduct.
He was arraigned Wednesday by District Judge Allen Sinclair, who set bail at $100,000. Quintanilla did not post bail and is detained at the Centre County Correctional Facility.
His preliminary hearing is scheduled for March 22.
This story was originally published March 15, 2023 at 2:10 PM.
CORRECTION: Police were dispatched to respond to this incident at about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, March 14. An earlier version of this story included the incorrect date.