WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — A woman is dead after a shooting in Wilkes-Barre over the weekend.
Candles now sit outside the Mila Lounge in Wilkes-Barre after the homicide of 30-year-old Ayana Velardo. In a criminal complaint obtained, 35-year-old Natasha Dixon is accused of shooting Velardo.
It happened after an altercation between the two at the lounge early Saturday morning. Witnesses say they saw them arguing inside the lounge, which then escalated outside.
That's where witnesses say they saw Dixon shoot Velardo and smile as she watched her fall to the ground, as stated in the affidavit. Reports claimed Dixon then got into a blue minivan and drove away with the passenger door open.
Detectives obtained surveillance video of the area, which confirms the statements of the witnesses.
Reimer Perdomo lives across the street and says he saw it all happen.
"I just sit out here, I see happy everybody. They close, they started to close. This time is three, two at night. This lady fighting, lady coming. Poof," Perdomo said.
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The complaint says police then responded to the scene and found Velardo across the street with a gunshot wound to the throat, unresponsive and without a pulse.
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She was later pronounced dead at Geisinger Wyoming Valley.
Donye Rivers lives nearby and came to pay his respects.
"It makes me feel empathy for the people who lost that person and for the person that died, and I just feel overall sadness. We should be able to have normal activities without you know violence happening," Rivers stated.
Dixon is in jail without bail and is being charged with criminal homicide. She has a hearing set for August 18.
28/22 News reached out to Police Chief Joseph Coffay, who was unavailable for comment, and Mayor George Brown, who does not have a comment on the shooting at this time.
