JEANNETTE, Penn. – A 16-year-old boy accused of shooting a classmate and then posting a “selfie” with the body on social media is now facing first degree murder charges.
According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Maxwell Marion Morton shot 16-year-old Ryan Mangan and then uploaded the photo evidence to Snapchat.
The photo shows the victim, Mangan, sitting in a chair with a gunshot wound to his face, according to police documents. A teen taking the photo faces the camera with the victim behind him.
Mangan’s mother found his body last Wednesday after he was shot inside his house, according to official documents.
Police searched the home and found a 9 mm shell casing but no gun.
Days after Mangan’s body was found, police got a call from another mother whose son got the Snapchat photo from the suspect.
Officials said the photo had the suspect’s name at the top and it matched the description of the crime scene.
Westmoreland County District Attorney John Peck says authorities plan to charge the suspect as an adult.
That mother said her son also received messages from the suspect that said, “Told you I cleaned up the shells” and “Ryan was not the last one.”
Authorities searched the suspect’s home, where they found a 9 mm handgun in the basement hidden under the steps.
Police said the teen confessed to using the firearm to shoot Mangan in the face and leaving him in his room.
He is accused of homicide and a firearms count.
A preliminary hearing for the teen has been scheduled for Feb. 19.
CNN’s Stephanie Gallman and Karan Olson contributed to this report.
Source: KCPQ, Pittsburg Tribune-Review & CNN
