Lansdale man charged with killing ex-girlfriend’s new partner

A Lansdale man has been charged with murder after he broke into the home of the mother of his two children and killed her boyfriend, Montgomery County prosecutors said Tuesday.

Christopher Moore Jr., 21, broke into his ex-girlfriend’s home at the Walnut Arms apartments in Lansdale by climbing through her bathroom window about 11 p.m. Monday night, prosecutors said.

The woman’s boyfriend, Wesley Smith, 21, was visiting her at the time, they said, and the two were in the bedroom.

After breaking inside, Moore walked into the room and started shooting at Smith, prosecutors said, striking him in the face and armpit.

Smith returned fire with his legally owned gun, shooting Moore multiple times, authorities said.

Smith’s injuries were severe, and he died at the scene, prosecutors said. Moore Jr. was flown by helicopter to Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, and is expected to survive, they said.

Moore, who remains hospitalized, was charged Tuesday with murder, burglary and related crimes. It was unclear whether he had retained an attorney.

According to the criminal complaint, Moore had broken into the woman’s apartment the previous evening, as well, and was sitting at her kitchen table when she arrived home from a night out. He attacked the woman, the complaint said, punching and strangling her. He brandished a gun and said “he would ‘pop’ her and whoever she was now dating,” the complaint said, and then he smashed her phone.

The woman did not report the incident to police, she told investigators, out of fear of escalating ongoing abuse.

It’s not uncommon for victims of domestic violence to decline to report violence to police. Survivors often feel isolated and embarrassed or fear that no one will believe them, experts say, and taking action, like leaving the relationship, can also escalate violence and place the victim in greater danger.