3 Killed In Deadly 24 Hours In Montco: What To Know

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, PA — Within a span of just under 24 hours, three people were shot and killed in Montgomery County this week. It marked a sudden spike in deadly crime amid raised concerns over domestic violence during the coronavirus pandemic.

The pair of shootings on Sunday and Monday are under active investigation. The circumstances surrounding each remain unclear. Both shook otherwise quiet suburban blocks typically removed from crimes of this nature.

The first incident occurred at around 10:43 p.m. Sunday night in Wynnewood, on the 1400 block of Surrey Lane. The residential street sits just off City Line Avenue near the border with the far western reaches of the city of Philadelphia.

When police arrived at the scene, they found 19-year-old Nahray Mumakk Crisden dead on the street from gunshot wounds, according to the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office.

In a statement, Lower Merion Police said the shooting was an isolated incident and there is no known threat to the public. At this time, it's unclear who shot and killed Crisden and what the motive was.

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"Whoever killed my son," Crisden's mother, Rashala Hill, told 6ABC, "They don't know they killed me too. I will never be OK. I will never be OK."

The next night, out in the Gilbertsville section of New Hanover Township, a domestic incident turned deadly, leaving three people dead.

The incident occurred inside a home on the 2900 block of Reifsnyder Road at around 8:07 p.m.

An elderly man, 78-year-old Gerald E. Mihalcik, shot and killed his son, Stephen J. Mihalcik, 58, and his son's wife, Rebecca Hall Evans, 51, before shooting himself, police said.

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Stephen Mihalcik was rushed to Reading Hospital, where he later died while receiving treatment, according to the District Attorney's Office.

"We are seeing more domestic violence homicides in Montgomery County this year than ever before," DA Kevin Steele said.

The homicide rate in the county amid the pandemic remains largely similar to the past decade, which has seen an average of 11 to 22 homicides yearly, according to statistics from the DA's Office. However, relationship violence and homicides have spiked: they account for nine of 2020's 14 homicides.

Typically, that rate is about 45 percent, a spokesperson for DA's Office said.

For months now, health experts and law enforcement officers have warned of the troubling correlation between quarantine situations and domestic violence.

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Cases of reported domestic violence increased by nine percent countywide over the first few months of the pandemic, officials said. The data was compiled from an analysis of thousands of 911 calls and police reports filed since March 11, and compared with data from the same period of time in 2019, the District Attorney's Office said.

Officials reminded residents that anyone in need of assistance should call 911, the Laurel House hotline at 800-642-3150 or the Women's Center of Montgomery County hotline at 800-773-2424.