Police close investigation in fatal Halloween shooting of Bensalem teen. What they found

Bucks County authorities have closed the investigation into the triple shooting that killed a 14-year-old Bensalem boy after determining the prime suspect, a 19-year-old Lower Makefield man, acted alone when he fired into a crowd of two dozen young people.

“There is no evidence that leads us to believe any others played a role in that tragic homicide,” Bensalem Director of Public Safety William McVey said Friday.

McVey also confirmed that Peter Romano, the middle school student killed, was not Sean Hughes' intended target that night, but that Hughes was shooting at someone else at the Bensalem strip shopping center at Bristol Pike and Woodbine Road.

McVey did not confirm if Hughes intended to shoot the 17- or 19-year-old males who were shot and seriously injured that night.

Hughes died of a self-inflicted gunshot on Nov. 2  following a police pursuit in Marysville Ohio, where he had fled after the shooting in a stolen 2014 Hyundai Elantra.

The announcement marked the end of the five-month investigation into the shooting that drew hundreds of teens and young adults to a vigil held the day after the murder. A large memorial to Peter remains near where he was struck down.

Bensalem police said they interviewed dozens of witnesses and executed several search warrants. Here is what the they concluded:

Photos of Peter Romano through the years See moments shared between Peter Romano and his family before his life was cut short

Hughes completed suicide with the same gun used in the shooting

Sean Hughes killed himself with a Sig Sauer handgun. Ballistic testing performed on that handgun and fired cartridges recovered at the shooting scene were identified as fired from the same handgun.

Two bullets were also recovered and identified as being fired from the Sig Sauer handgun, including the bullet retrieved from Romano at autopsy, police said.

The handgun that Hughes completed suicide with was also processed for DNA evidence and testing showed his DNA was found on the weapon including the trigger, slide, sights and magazine.

The investigation revealed that Hughes stole the Sig Sauer handgun from an apartment in Philadelphia. The original owner, Kenrick R. Winslow, of Chalfont, gave the handgun to one of the apartment residents in 2017 or 2018.

Winslow,  70, was charged Thursday with illegal transfer of firearm, a misdemeanor offense, and was released on $15,000 unsecured bail.

More on the murder of Peter Romano Memorial to slain Bensalem teen Peter Romano vandalized. Here’s what was captured on video

Sean Hughes admitted to others he was the shooter

Police interviewed individuals who claimed that Hughes admitted he was responsible for the shooting, according to a press release.

A cell phone belonging to Sean Hughes was analyzed, and a forensic examination was performed to include cell phone records, text messages, and social media applications.

There were no messages or any other communications that showed that anyone assisted, conspired, or participated in the shooting other than Hughes, Bensalem police said.

“After a thorough investigation, the Bensalem Township Police Department found no evidence that anyone other than Sean Hughes was involved in the shooting and homicide in Bensalem Township on October 31, 2023,” a press release added.

This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Bensalem Halloween shooting investigation closed; suspect acted alone: DA