Teen charged with attempted homicide
State police have charged a Greene County teen has been charged as an adult with attempted homicide after he allegedly shot a man on Saturday in German Township.
Police allege that Belmont Franklin Forsythe, 17, of Waynesburg shot James Renox several times in his right and left upper arms with a .38-caliber revolver during a bonfire off Leckrone-Masontown Road.
Renox, 23, of Masontown was driven to Uniontown Hospital by vehicle to be treated for his injuries, before being transferred to a Pittsburgh-area hospital for additional treatment. His condition was not immediately available.
Police said that Forsythe showed up to the party around 11 p.m. Saturday with a handgun that authorities said was previously reported stolen in West Virginia.
Forsythe reportedly told police that he had heard that there had been fights in the past where the party was being held, so he decided to carry a gun with him.
Police said Forsythe showed other people the gun, and someone at the party told him to put the weapon away, but he refused.
State police Trooper Daniel Boyd said James Renox’s brother, Ray, punched Forsythe in the face because he was pointing the gun at someone, and when James Renox intervened, Forsythe allegedly fired three shots, hitting James Renox in both arms.
The complaint said Forsythe then fled the scene, but ended up in Masontown, where borough police apprehended him.
Masontown police Chief Joe Ryan said Forsythe had the gun in his hand when he was discovered early Sunday morning in the parking lot of the Masontown Borough Building at 1 E. Church St.
Boyd said that Forsythe dropped the gun on the sidewalk outside the office of Magisterial District Judge Randy Abraham after he tried to climb on to the roof of that building to avoid being captured.
Forsythe was captured about a half mile away at a home on Route 21, police said.
Ryan gave high praise to Masontown police Officer Mike Yeager and the borough’s police dog, Brony, for their part in apprehending Forsythe, along with Alexis Metros, who found the Forsythe’s gun.
“All the officers involved did an excellent job apprehending the suspect,” Ryan said.
Boyd said when state police questioned Forsythe, he said he did not know who he was shooting. Police said that after Forsythe fired the shots, he heard other people at the party screaming “Oh my God, you shot him.”
Forsythe reportedly told police that he shouldn’t have taken the gun to the party and said that he was scared because he knew he had shot someone three times and did not want to go to jail.
He was arraigned Sunday by Magisterial District Judge Mike Defino Jr. and lodged in the county prison on $250,000 bond.