On the night of November 28, 2017, 21-year-old Merlos Mukaj was shot and killed on the 3500 block of Lancaster Avenue in Philadelphia. Mukaj, a Rowan College at Gloucester County computer science student, had been involved in a heated argument with his girlfriend when the confrontation drew the attention of a nearby passerby.

A 24-year-old Drexel University graduate, Joseph Howanski, intervened in the dispute. According to reports, Mukaj shoved Howanski and swung at him; Howanski, who held a concealed carry permit, then drew a firearm and shot Mukaj three times. Emergency crews arrived around 11:40 p.m.; Mukaj was found with a gunshot wound to the chest, taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, and pronounced dead shortly before midnight.

Homicide detectives took Howanski into custody, and he was arrested on charges including murder, possession of an instrument of crime, and recklessly endangering another person; he was jailed and denied bail. The woman involved in the argument was a Drexel University student and Howanski reportedly had no prior connection to Mukaj or her.

If anyone witnessed the events on Lancaster Avenue that night or has information about the confrontation, please come forward.