Two suspects appeared in court on Tuesday night following a deadly shooting on Cornelia Street in Plattsburgh.Police said they received a report about an alleged shooting near Cornelia Street, between Montcalm Avenue and Champlain Street, around 2:23 a.m.When police arrived, they found a victim with a gunshot wound. The victim, who was later identified as 31-year-old Markus Dixon, had been shot multiple times and was treated on scene before being transported to Champlain Valley Physician's Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.Police were able to identify the shooter as 24-year-old Chazz Johnson. Investigators learned that Johnson's girlfriend, 21-year-old Erica Colon, had been involved in an altercation with Dixon the night before near Pizza Bono and had called Johnson to complain.Clinton County District Attorney Andrew Wylie said Johnson and Colon located Dixon at 137 Cornelia Street, and Johnson shot him three times in the chest outside the home before fleeing the scene.Related: Watch full news briefing hereSeveral hours later, at 7:30 a.m., a multi-agency force including members of New York State Police, the Tri-County SRT, and Plattsburgh City Police located and surrounded Johnson and Colon at the Pine Aire Motel in Beekmantown and arrested them. They were turned over to the Plattsburgh City Police Department for further questioning. Wylie said both Johnson and Colon lived at the motel, and a handgun was found that matched the ballistics evidence found at the scene of the shooting.An autopsy will be performed on Dixon on Wednesday morning in Glens Falls.Wylie said Johnson is being charged with second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon. Colon is also being charged with conspiracy and possession of a weapon.Wylie said Johnson has a previous criminal history for criminal possession of a weapon out of Sullivan County. Colon does not have a previous criminal history.On Tuesday night in Plattsburgh City Court, both Colon and Johnson pleaded not guilty to their respective charges. Colon is being held in jail on bail, and Johnson was also held in jail and not offered bail.They are scheduled to be back in court on Sept. 9. The area where the shooting reportedly happened was less than a mile from the hospital and about half a mile from SUNY Plattsburgh. Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh was also placed under emergency lockdown Tuesday around 3:40 a.m, according to the hospital. The lockdown was lifted before 9 a.m.In a release, CVPH said the lockdown was initiated after hospital staff conferred with local police about the shooting incident.CVPH officials said that the hospital was never under immediate threat, but precautions were taken to maintain the safety of employees and patients during the police investigation.Once the suspects were arrested, the lockdown was lifted."We’re grateful for our team’s quick work to keep our patients and each other safe. We are also deeply appreciative to local law enforcement for their partnership,” said Brenda Murphy, chief quality and safety officer at CVPH. Earlier on Tuesday, SUNY Plattsburgh University police had sent out an emergency alert to students and staff regarding the incident. Campus police told NBC5 the campus had not been placed under lockdown.Both Cornelia Street and Montcalm Avenue reopened as of 11 a.m., with yellow police tape being removed. Editor's note: Due to police error, the spelling of the victim's name and Cologne's name have been corrected from a previous version.
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. —
Two suspects appeared in court on Tuesday night following a deadly shooting on Cornelia Street in Plattsburgh.
Police said they received a report about an alleged shooting near Cornelia Street, between Montcalm Avenue and Champlain Street, around 2:23 a.m.
Advertisement
When police arrived, they found a victim with a gunshot wound. The victim, who was later identified as 31-year-old Markus Dixon, had been shot multiple times and was treated on scene before being transported to Champlain Valley Physician's Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Police were able to identify the shooter as 24-year-old Chazz Johnson. Investigators learned that Johnson's girlfriend, 21-year-old Erica Colon, had been involved in an altercation with Dixon the night before near Pizza Bono and had called Johnson to complain.
Clinton County District Attorney Andrew Wylie said Johnson and Colon located Dixon at 137 Cornelia Street, and Johnson shot him three times in the chest outside the home before fleeing the scene.
Related: Watch full news briefing here
Several hours later, at 7:30 a.m., a multi-agency force including members of New York State Police, the Tri-County SRT, and Plattsburgh City Police located and surrounded Johnson and Colon at the Pine Aire Motel in Beekmantown and arrested them. They were turned over to the Plattsburgh City Police Department for further questioning.
Wylie said both Johnson and Colon lived at the motel, and a handgun was found that matched the ballistics evidence found at the scene of the shooting.
An autopsy will be performed on Dixon on Wednesday morning in Glens Falls.
Wylie said Johnson is being charged with second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon. Colon is also being charged with conspiracy and possession of a weapon.
Wylie said Johnson has a previous criminal history for criminal possession of a weapon out of Sullivan County. Colon does not have a previous criminal history.
On Tuesday night in Plattsburgh City Court, both Colon and Johnson pleaded not guilty to their respective charges. Colon is being held in jail on bail, and Johnson was also held in jail and not offered bail.
They are scheduled to be back in court on Sept. 9.
NBC5
The area where the shooting reportedly happened was less than a mile from the hospital and about half a mile from SUNY Plattsburgh.
Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital in Plattsburgh was also placed under emergency lockdown Tuesday around 3:40 a.m, according to the hospital. The lockdown was lifted before 9 a.m.
In a release, CVPH said the lockdown was initiated after hospital staff conferred with local police about the shooting incident.
CVPH officials said that the hospital was never under immediate threat, but precautions were taken to maintain the safety of employees and patients during the police investigation.
Once the suspects were arrested, the lockdown was lifted.
"We’re grateful for our team’s quick work to keep our patients and each other safe. We are also deeply appreciative to local law enforcement for their partnership,” said Brenda Murphy, chief quality and safety officer at CVPH.
Earlier on Tuesday, SUNY Plattsburgh University police had sent out an emergency alert to students and staff regarding the incident. Campus police told NBC5 the campus had not been placed under lockdown.
Both Cornelia Street and Montcalm Avenue reopened as of 11 a.m., with yellow police tape being removed.
Editor's note: Due to police error, the spelling of the victim's name and Cologne's name have been corrected from a previous version.
