ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A suspect has been arrested in connection with a deadly shooting that claimed the life of a 19-year-old man in Allentown last week, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office.
Prosecutors say Yaniel Fermin, 17, of Allentown, was taken into custody less than 24 hours after the shooting. He is charged with criminal homicide, possession with intent to deliver, and possession of a firearm by a minor.
The victim was identified by the Lehigh County Coroner as Jeomy Soto, 19, of Allentown. Soto was pronounced dead after being transported to a local hospital. The cause of death was determined to be gunshot wounds, and the manner of death was ruled a homicide.
According to investigators, at approximately 9:16 p.m. on January 22, 2026, officers with the Allentown Police Department were dispatched to the 500 block of West Washington Street for a report of a man who had been shot behind a residence.
Police located the victim suffering from gunshot injuries. Despite life-saving efforts, he later died at the hospital.
Authorities have not released additional details about the circumstances leading up to the shooting. The investigation remains ongoing.
Anyone with information related to this case is urged to contact Allentown Police.
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add Officers found the victim, identified as Jeomy Miguel Soto, suffering from gunshot wounds. Soto died at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Muhlenberg and his death was ruled a homicide by the Lehigh County Coroner. On Jan. 23, 2026, an autopsy was held at the Lehigh County Coroner’s Office after which the cause of Soto’s death was determined to be gunshot wounds and the manner of death was determined to be homicide. A witness, whose name will not be released, was interviewed by police. The witness said he was with Soto at the time of the shooting and met with a man he only knew as “Po” to collect money owed to him for the sale of THC vapes. “Po” was later identified by police as Yaniel Fermin. Fermin disagreed about the money owed and a fight ensued between Fermin and the witness. During that fight, Fermin was in possession of a 9mm semiautomatic handgun and fired at least two shots which struck Soto who was standing nearby. Previous Previous Local boxing gym creates safe space for kids Local boxing gym creates safe space for kids The gym just moved to Walnut Street in the city, and they ar… Next Next Up Next Up Lehigh Valley Humane Society and CART team up to shelter pets in cold weather Lehigh Valley Humane Society and CART team up to shelter pet… HELLERTOWN, Pa. – The Lehigh Valley Humane Society partnered… Suspect arrested in homicide that killed 19-year-old Allentown man Lorrie King 1 hr ago 0 Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Washington Street Allentown shooting scene Jayson Wagner | for WFMZ-TV Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Print Copy article link Save ALLENTOWN, PA. – The Lehigh County District Attorney’s office says an arrest has been made in a homicide that occurred in Allentown Thursday. 17-year-old Yaniel Fermin of Allentown, was taken into custody less than 24 hours after allegedly shooting and killing 19-year-old Jeomy Soto, and is charged with criminal homicide, possession with intent to deliver and possession of a firearm by a minor. The District Attorney’s office says that at 9:16 p.m. on Jan. 22, 2026, Allentown Police were called to the 500 block of West Washington Street for a report of a man who had been shot in the back of a residence. Local Trending News Officers found the victim, identified as Jeomy Miguel Soto, suffering from gunshot wounds. Soto died at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Muhlenberg and his death was ruled a homicide by the Lehigh County Coroner. On Jan. 23, 2026, an autopsy was held at the Lehigh County Coroner’s Office after which the cause of Soto’s death was determined to be gunshot wounds and the manner of death was determined to be homicide. A witness, whose name will not be released, was interviewed by police. The witness said he was with Soto at the time of the shooting and met with a man he only knew as “Po” to collect money owed to him for the sale of THC vapes. “Po” was later identified by police as Yaniel Fermin. Fermin disagreed about the money owed and a fight ensued between Fermin and the witness. During that fight, Fermin was in possession of a 9mm semiautomatic handgun and fired at least two shots which struck Soto who was standing nearby. Fermin is under the age of 18 and possession of a 9mm semiautomatic handgun by a 17-year-old in these circumstances is illegal in Pennsylvania. On Jan. 23 2026, Fermin was a passenger in a vehicle stopped by Allentown Police Department Patrol Officers near the area of 6th and West Cedar Streets. Inside that vehicle in close proximity to Fermin, police found THC vapes, a large amount of marijuana and other drug paraphernalia. As a result of the vehicle stop and the resulting drug charges Fermin was in custody at approximately 12:30pm Jan. 23, 2026 and the investigation continued. The charges of Criminal Homicide and Possession of a Firearm by a Minor are related to the shooting of Soto on Jan. 22, 2026 and the charge of Possession with Intent to Deliver is related to the vehicle stop on Jan. 23, 2026. Although he is 17 years of age, Fermin was arrested as an adult on all charges as permitted by Pennsylvania law at the discretion of the District Attorney. Fermin is in Lehigh County Jail without bail and his preliminary hearing is scheduled for 1:15 p.m. Friday, January 30 in Lehigh County Central Court. The District Attorney’s office says they do not believe there is any continuing risk to the community arising out of this criminal episode. This investigation is on-going and anyone with additional information is asked to contact the Allentown Police Department.
Here’s the updated, cleaned First Source News–style article, with the added details folded in clearly and professionally, no links, no clutter, and only confirmed information:
Suspect Arrested in Homicide That Killed 19-Year-Old Allentown Man
ALLENTOWN, Pa. — An arrest has been made in a homicide that claimed the life of a 19-year-old man in Allentown, according to the Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office.
Prosecutors say Yaniel Fermin, 17, of Allentown, was taken into custody less than 24 hours after the deadly shooting. He is charged with criminal homicide, possession with intent to deliver, and possession of a firearm by a minor.
The victim was identified as Jeomy Miguel Soto, 19, of Allentown.
According to authorities, at approximately 9:16 p.m. on January 22, 2026, officers with the Allentown Police Department were dispatched to the 500 block of West Washington Street for a report of a man who had been shot behind a residence.
Officers located Soto suffering from gunshot wounds. He was transported to Lehigh Valley Hospital–Muhlenberg, where he later died. The Lehigh County Coroner’s Office ruled his death a homicide.
An autopsy was conducted on January 23, 2026, at the coroner’s office. The cause of death was determined to be gunshot wounds, and the manner of death was confirmed as homicide.
Investigators say a witness, whose identity has not been released, told police he was with Soto at the time of the shooting. The witness said they met with a man he knew only as “Po” to collect money allegedly owed for the sale of THC vapes. Police later identified “Po” as Fermin.
According to the District Attorney’s Office, a disagreement over the money led to a physical altercation between Fermin and the witness. During that fight, Fermin was allegedly in possession of a 9mm semiautomatic handgun and fired at least two shots, striking Soto, who was standing nearby.
Because Fermin is under the age of 18, possession of a firearm under these circumstances is illegal under Pennsylvania law.
On January 23, 2026, Fermin was a passenger in a vehicle stopped by Allentown police near the intersection of 6th Street and West Cedar Street. Police say THC vapes, a large amount of marijuana, and additional drug paraphernalia were found inside the vehicle in close proximity to Fermin.
As a result of the traffic stop, Fermin was taken into custody around 12:30 p.m. on January 23, 2026, while the homicide investigation continued.
Prosecutors say the criminal homicide and firearm charges are directly related to the January 22 shooting, while the possession with intent to deliver charge stems from the vehicle stop the following day.
Although Fermin is 17 years old, he was arrested and charged as an adult, as permitted under Pennsylvania law at the discretion of the District Attorney’s Office.
Fermin is currently being held in Lehigh County Jail without bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for 1:15 p.m. on Friday, January 30, in Lehigh County Central Court.
The District Attorney’s Office says investigators do not believe there is any ongoing threat to the community related to this incident. The investigation remains active, and anyone with additional information is encouraged to contact Allentown Police.
