LANCASTER – A man charged with two counts of attempted criminal homicide, carrying a firearm without a license, and discharging a firearm into an occupied structure waived a preliminary hearing. 22-year-old Joseph Rivera Jr. of Cuero, Texas will face those charges in Lancaster County Court. He is charged with shooting a victim in the upper right thigh through a hotel room door at the Budget Host Inn on Lincoln Highway East on October 5, 2022 at around 1:30 p.m. East Lampeter Township Police found 15 bullet holes in the upper center of the hotel room door and cartridges were found on the floor directly outside the door. Another victim was in the room when the shots were fired, but was not struck. Video footage from the Lancaster Safety Coalition, Budget Inn, and buildings in the area showed a black Hyundai Sonata dropping off two individuals wearing masks toward the rear of the hotel. Further information gleaned from the investigation pointed to Rivera Jr. as one of the shooters. Rivera Jr. fled to Texas following the shooting. He was extradited back to Lancaster in August.
JOSEPH RIVERA, JR