A Chester man who opened fire at his workplace, killing two people, is on trial for murder
Wilbert Rosado-Ruiz brought a 9mm handgun to Delaware County Linen in 2024 and shot five of his co-workers. Prosecutors say he would have shot more people had his gun not jammed.
Two years after a Chester man stormed into his workplace with a gun and opened fire in a shooting that left two people dead, he is on trial for murder before a Delaware County judge.
Wilbert Rosado-Ruiz screamed he was “tired of people f— with" him as he fired shots at nearly 50 of his coworkers at Delaware County Linen, injuring five of them, according to the affidavit of probable cause for his arrest.
Rosado-Ruiz, 63, is charged with two counts of murder for killing brothers Leovanny Peña Peña, 30, and Giguenson Peña Peña, 26, after reporting for his early-morning shift at the industrial-laundry business.
Three other people were shot during what prosecutors described as a rampage.
Rosado-Ruiz’s attorney, Kevin O’Neill, has said his client fired the shots after feeling threatened during a confrontation with a group of his coworkers. His actions that day, O’Neill said, did not constitute murder.
But Assistant District Attorney Sophia Polites said Rosado-Ruiz went to work that day with the specific intent to kill.
Polites rested her case Thursday, but the trial is not over: O’Neill will present his defense in July. The delay, he said Thursday, was to accommodate members of Rosado-Ruiz’s family, who need to travel to Delaware County from Puerto Rico to testify on his behalf.
Prosecutors have said Rosado-Ruiz intended to kill more people on the day of the shooting, and would have done so had the 9mm Remington R51 handgun he was carrying not jammed. Investigators recovered the weapon and traced it to Rosado-Ruiz after his DNA was found on it, according to testimony this week.
Rosado-Ruiz’s coworkers told investigators he had a history of abusive, bullying behavior, including threatening people with his gun, in the 10 years he worked at Delaware County Linen before the shooting, according to court filings.
On the day of the shooting, Rosado-Ruiz got into a verbal dispute with a coworker, Nilamarie Valdivieso.
Valdivieso testified that Rosado-Ruiz “looked very mad” when he arrived at work, and exploded at her when she asked him what was bothering him.
Later, after Valdivieso returned with two supervisors, along with Leovanny Peña Peña, she said, the conversation escalated, and Rosado-Ruiz pulled the 9mm handgun from his waistband.
He shot Valdivieso once in the chest before chasing down and firing at the other victims as they ran and dived for cover, she said. The Peña Peña brothers were both shot multiple times trying to flee Rosado Ruiz, and were pronounced dead at the scene by medics.
Another victim, Charles Doyle, testified that he was fixing an industrial washing machine when he heard several shots ring out in quick succession.
He said he saw Rosado-Ruiz pull a second magazine from his pocket and reload his handgun. Doyle said he yelled out to distract the gunman so that his father, who also worked there, had time to flee.
When Doyle turned to leave, he said, Rosado-Ruiz shot him three times in the back, shattering his right arm and causing severe internal damage to his organs.
Doyle said he is unable to work because of nerve damage in his arms — he said moving his hands feels similar to trying to wiggle his ears.
He testified that he did not see or hear anyone threatening Rosado-Ruiz before the gunfire rang out.
Rosado-Ruiz fled after the shooting, which led police from surrounding departments to lock down streets around the business.
He was taken into custody by an officer from Trainer, pulled over on the edge of Chester as he attempted to drive home. Inside the car, investigators found a backpack with a smaller bag containing additional 9mm bullets, authorities said.
