Reading Man Charged in Fatal Stabbing

Oliver Paniagua-Pena, 39, has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder and related offenses in the May 9 fatal stabbing of 56-year-old Leonardo Mercado-Gomez in Reading, Pennsylvania. Mercado-Gomez was walking home from his job at Sun Rich Foods when he was attacked on River Road; he later died at a hospital from multiple stab wounds. Police say a months-long investigation, including witness interviews and review of surveillance footage, led them to identify Paniagua-Pena, and DNA evidence connected him to the crime scene. He was arraigned and held in Berks County Jail without bail, while the investigation remains ongoing.