A Stranger Intervened in a Couple's Fight. Now He's Charged With Murder

Associated Press
Updated
The shooter didn't know the couple and shot the victim three times, police said

Authorities said Thursday that 24-year-old Joseph Howanski has been charged with murder and reckless endangerment for the killing of Merlos Mukaj. The 21-year-old victim was pronounced dead late Tuesday.

A police lieutenant says the shooter didn’t know the couple and that he shot the victim three times.

The shooting happened near one of the college’s student housing complexes. A Drexel spokeswoman says Howanski is a former student of the university but Mukaj never attended the school.

Court records did not list an attorney for Howanski.