Mother pleads for answers in 14-year-old daughter's shooting death
DUQUESNE, Pa. (KDKA) - The mother of a 14-year-old girl who was shot and killed in Duquesne speaking out.
LaToya Roberts says she needs help finding the person responsible for her daughter's death.
"I just got off work and I came home and my mom started crying," LaToya Roberts said.
LaToya Roberts says she plays the day over and over in her head. Friday evening, Latoya's own mother broke the news that her 14-year-old daughter, La'Japonis Roberts, had been shot and killed.
"She had her whole life ahead of her and this is what you do because you're all out here being trigger-happy," LaToya said.
Allegheny County police say Ponis Roberts was a passenger inside a burgundy-colored Chevy Cruz that was riddled with bullets. The shooting happened just after 5 p.m. Friday in the 700 block of Priscilla Avenue in Duquesne.
The Cruze crashed into a white BMW after the shooting. But when police got to the scene, the driver of the Cruze was nowhere to be found. LaToya Roberts firmly believes that's the person who holds the key to catching her daughter's killer.
"You jumped out of the car. You left my daughter for dead. You're not coming forward. You seen who shot her. Come forward," Roberts said.
Ponis was just two weeks into her freshman year at Fox Chapel Area High School. LaToya says her daughter was attending online school and had planned to play basketball this season.
The district sent KDKA a letter in response to her tragic death.
It reads in part: "The Fox Chapel Area School District is deeply saddened by this loss. Counselors and psychologists are available to students and staff at Fox Chapel Area High School, and counselors and other mental health professionals are available at all of our other buildings."
"I told her I love her. And when she got outside, I said, 'be careful and stay in contact with me.' And that's the last time I seen her," Roberts recalls.
Police said they deployed a team of Violent Crime and Firearms detectives to the area where Roberts was shot and killed. On Tuesday, police said three juveniles were seen at the intersection of Auriles Street and Priscilla Avenue, two of them with guns.
Police said officers chased the juveniles, and one of them, 17-year-old Justice Haten, allegedly pointed his gun at police then tried to get rid of it before he was apprehended. Hayden was charged as an adult with aggravated assault and gun violations.
Detectives are asking for the community's help in solving Roberts' death. If you saw something or know something, you're urged to come forward.