Fugitive Wanted For Killing, Burning PA Woman, Nabbed In Westchester

YONKERS, NY — A Pennsylvania man on the run, accused in the slaying of an off-duty EMT, was captured in the Hudson Valley, according to authorities.

The fugitive, suspected in a homicide in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, was captured on Thursday, around 5:45 a.m., in Yonkers, by the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force and the Pennsylvania State Police Fugitive Apprehension Unit, according to the Hazleton City Police Department.

He was found at the Hilltop Inn and Suites in Yonkers, according to the Journal News.

After appearing before a Yonkers judge, 55-year-old Terence Leroy Ray was denied bail on a fugitive from justice warrant, and was booked into the Westchester County Correctional Facility on Thursday evening, according to Westchester County inmate records and the Times Leader.

Hazleton police and the Luzerne County District Attorney's Office allege that Ray assaulted and fatally shot 39-year-old Jessica Lockwood at his Hazleton home on April 26.

Hazleton police said that Lockwood's cellphone was found on State Route 424 on April 26, when she was reported missing by her family after not showing up to pick up her young son. Text messages revealed that she was meeting Ray to purchase pain medications.

According to Hazleton police, Lockwood's body was found the next morning when Hazleton firefighters responded to reports of what was believed to be a mannequin on fire near Ray's home. Firefighters soon realized that it was a woman's body wrapped in a tarp, and contacted Hazleton police.

An April 29, autopsy concluded that Lockwood died of blunt force trauma and a gunshot, according to the Luzerne County District Attorney's Office. The manner of death was ruled a homicide.

According to police, a vehicle registered to Ray's address was tracked to the location of the burning body.

After police executed a search warrant at Ray's home, they found evidence that Lockwood was murdered there, including shell casings, a pool of blood, and Lockwood's gold-colored stud earring that was missing from her body.

In an April 29, arrest warrant, Hazleton police and the Luzerne County district attorney charged Ray with criminal homicide, abuse of a corpse, and tampering with evidence.

Authorities believe that Ray soon fled the area after he disposed of Lockwood's body and set fire to it.

In a probable cause affidavit, Hazleton police discovered that Ray's wife rented a Jeep and was driving to New York for the weekend, according to the Standard Speaker.

During a press conference on May 5, District Attorney Sam Sanguedolce said that Lockwood had been suffering from extensive pain due to neck surgeries, and had been buying pain medications from Ray.

According to her obituary, Lockwood was a volunteer firefighter, ambulance technician, and mother of two.