15-Year-Old Teen Charged as Adult in Murder of Pottstown Homeless Man

By Dhivya Easwarasamy On Nov 26, 2023

15-Year-Old Teen Charged as Adult in Murder of Pottstown Homeless Man

Thomas Niarhos, 15, of Stowe is charged with first-degree murder and other crimes as an adult in connection with the death of a man in Pottstown on Wednesday, according to investigators.

The shooting took place around noon at Security Plaza, which is near South Hanover Street, according to the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office.

Investigators say Niarhos killed 39-year-old Jeremiah Hawkins, who was homeless and was known as “Jay” by some people in the area. According to the cops, Niarhos was being held by witnesses and then taken into custody.

The office of the district attorney said Niarhos went outside and found Hawkins. Witnesses say that Niarhos reached out to shoot Hawkins while the two were fighting.

Investigators said Thomas Niarhos, 15, of Stowe, is facing first-degree murder and other charges as an adult related to the murder of a man in Pottstown on Wednesday:

Investigators said Thomas Niarhos, 15, of Stowe, is facing first-degree murder and other charges as an adult related to the murder of a man in Pottstown on Wednesday. https://t.co/vsBwLk3o9G
— WFMZ-TV 69News (@69News) November 25, 2023

According to the police, Hawkins swung a tire at the gun to try to get rid of it. Court papers say that officers showed the suspect’s dad a picture of the gun that they had found.

Documents show that he said the gun wasn’t his but that he knew it was his. It also says that the suspect’s father found a note in his son’s room that said the boy was planning to run away.

For the court documents, a check of police records showed that the suspect was seen hanging out near Security Plaza in July.

These news have been making headlines:

Niarhos is said to have told cops that a homeless man named “Jay” raped someone he knows behind a dumpster. The attacker is said to have approached Hawkins on Wednesday and called him “a rapist.”

Further records show that Pottstown When police called the girl’s mother, she reportedly said that her daughter had only said “something had happened to her” in Pottstown and not given any other information. On paper, it said that her mother was told to take her daughter to the hospital for an exam.

Paperwork says that the girl’s mother called the police the next day to say they didn’t want to continue a criminal investigation. Niarhos is set to have a preliminary hearing on Thursday.