Tarentum homicide suspect had been ordered to pay victim child support
Dec. 24—A man charged with shooting a woman to death in Tarentum has a 5-month-old child with the woman and had recently been ordered to pay child support, according to Allegheny County Police.
DaShawn Frederick, 26, of Wilkinsburg surrendered to authorities Thursday night. He is charged with criminal homicide in the Dec. 16 fatal shooting of Arquwonna Wright, 30.
In a criminal complaint, Allegheny County Police said Frederick was on active duty in the U.S. Army and stationed in Hawaii. He was on leave from Dec. 10 to Jan. 2 in the Pittsburgh area, detectives said they learned from the Army Criminal Investigations Division.
Police said Frederick rented a silver Mitsubishi Outlander on Dec. 15 and returned it as scheduled at Pittsburgh International Airport on Dec. 20, four days after the shooting.
Police said a silver SUV identified as a Mitsubishi Outlander was seen on video footage of the shooting at Main Street and Fifth Avenue.
In the footage, police said, Wright walks toward the SUV's driver side and then turns to walk away before falling down on the street where she was found dead.
Police said a muzzle flash can be seen coming from the driver's side of the SUV.
Tarentum police responded at 11:06 p.m. Dec. 16 to a report of shots fired and a woman lying on the ground at that location. Medics pronounced her dead there minutes later.
Investigators found seven spent 9mm cartridge casings with the headstamp "Ammo Inc.," police said in the complaint.
Detectives said Frederick bought two guns, a .22-caliber and a 9mm, on Dec. 15 at a store in Beaver County. He also bought a 20-round box of 9mm ammunition with the headstamp "Ammo Inc.," the complaint states.
Police did not say in the complaint when the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas ordered Frederick to pay child support to Wright. He was ordered to pay her $635 per month and almost $2,200 in arrears.
Detectives said a person who lives in Wright's apartment building reported hearing two people arguing before hearing multiple gunshots.
Another resident, who was not identified as male or female, said they heard Wright outside the apartment building before the shooting, and believed she was on the phone in a heated argument with a man. Wright was talking very loudly and yelling at times.
Detectives said they obtained cell phone records showing that Wright made an 88-second call to a number used by Frederick around 11 p.m., five minutes before the shooting was reported.
A few minutes before the call, detectives said records show a text message was sent from Frederick's number to Wright's that read, "All that (expletive) you was talkin you ain't on any of that scared to open ya door and it sound like you was cryin."
Detectives said Wright sent a screenshot of the text to her family.
According to the complaint, the resident heard Wright tell the man on the phone many times that he and his mother should leave her alone. The resident said Wright yelled some obscenities and ended the conversation by saying, "Come around here again and see what happens to you."
The resident said he heard six or seven gunshots about five minutes later.
Frederick was arraigned on a charge of criminal homicide early Friday morning. He was denied bond and sent to the Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh.
He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Jan. 7.
Brian C. Rittmeyer is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Brian at 724-226-4701, brittmeyer@triblive.com or via Twitter .
