Convicted killer gunned down man outside central Pa. shopping center, police say

A 32-year-old man charged with killing another man in an ambush outside a Chambersburg shopping center last month was out on probation for fatally stabbing a neighbor in 2009, according to court records.

Joshua Bresnick — accused of driving a minivan to the shopping center Dec. 18 and firing from the driver’s seat — got out on an early release in connection with fatally stabbing a neighbor in Maryland when he was 16. He was sentenced to 20 years, but the judge suspended 11 years of the sentence.

Police said Bresnick had waited outside the shopping center last month before Rakeem Floyd, 20, arrived. Surveillance cameras recorded the minivan parked at the Southgate Mall from about 5–5:48 p.m., then it drove away, returning a few minutes before a passenger in Bresnick’s van got out, accosted Floyd from behind and started fighting Floyd.

Then Bresnick pulled up and started shooting Floyd, according to court documents. The passenger then got back into the minivan and Bresnick drove away, according to the documents. The passenger was not identified in court records.

Chambersburg police responded to a shots fired call around 6:40 p.m. on Dec. 18 and found Floyd, of Chambersburg, dead in front of the Family Dollar store in the Southgate Mall.

Police charged Bresnick on Dec. 30 with homicide. He was arrested Friday and is being held without bail at the Franklin County Jail, online court records show. Police said his prior conviction for second-degree murder legally barred him from carrying a gun.

The court records filed against Bresnick outlined how police linked Bresnick to the killing.

A witness told police that Floyd was involved in a fight with another man outside Family Dollar before he was killed, according to an affidavit of probable cause.

While the two men were fighting, a white man wearing glasses — later identified as Bresnick — drove up in a minivan and pulled out a gun, the affidavit said. Court documents said Bresnick shot Floyd several times before driving away.

After the shooting, police said they got several tips that helped them trace Bresnick to an address in McConnellsburg, Fulton County.

While searching the address, police said they found a silver Toyota Sienna minivan with a spare driver’s side back tire and cosmetic damage. Police found a piece of mail with Bresnick’s name on it inside the van, according to the affidavit.

The husband of the minivan’s registered owner told police he’d let Bresnick borrow the vehicle since early December. Bresnick had been working for the man but didn’t show up for work after the fatal shooting on Dec. 18, the affidavit said.

At some point when the man asked Bresnick what happened to the minivan, he replied, “What van?”, according to the affidavit.

Another witness confirmed he spoke with Bresnick and the other man while Bresnick was parked in the mall lot before the shooting, court documents said.

The court documents did not provide the reason for the fight or a motive for the killing.

Floyd’s funeral was held Friday. His obituary said he loved rapping and making music and was interested in starting a clothing line. He is survived by a son, parents, four siblings and numerous other family members.

In addition to homicide, Bresnick was charged with simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and two firearms offenses. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 14 in front of Magisterial District Judge Glenn Manns.

Bresnick was 16 in January 2009 when he repeatedly stabbed 45-year-old David Falkinburg, a man who lived a few doors down from Bresnick in Baltimore, according to The Baltimore Sun. Falkinburg’s friends found him dead in a first-floor bedroom of his home while checking on his welfare after not seeing him for days, news reports said.

The Baltimore Sun reported that Bresnick showed up at Falkinburg’s home while police were at the scene investigating his death. News reports said detectives noticed a stab wound on one of Bresnick’s arms. He was taken to police headquarters and charged with first-degree murder.

Online court records show Bresnick pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in August 2009.