Five dead in Philadelphia-area shooting spree that’s nation’s worst violence yet around July 4: Police say a 40-year-old man armed with a rifle, pistol, extra magazines, a police scanner, and a bulletproof vest shot four men in a Philadelphia neighborhood and chased and killed a fifth inside a house.
There were also injuries to a 2-year-old boy and a 13-year-old in Monday night’s violence in Kingsessing, the nation’s worst violence around July 4th.
A gunman fired at police as they chased him for blocks, police said. Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said at a news conference that he surrendered in an alley when they caught up with him. She said the shooter had no connection to the victims before the shooting.
It was a good thing our officers were on the scene and responded as quickly as they did. It is difficult to describe the level of bravery and courage shown here, as well as the restraint shown,” Outlaw said.
After the Philadelphia shooting, gunfire erupted at a neighborhood festival in Fort Worth, Texas, killing three and injuring eight.
A shooting took place at a holiday weekend block party in Baltimore, about 90 miles (145 kilometers) southwest of Philadelphia. According to officials, more than half of the victims were minors.
About 8:30 p.m., Philadelphia police officers were flagged down Monday. Kingsessing also reported multiple shots fired. The police found some victims and heard more shots as they helped them, Outlaw said. Fox 29 reported that a fifth victim had been chased into his home and shot dead. The home was found to have bullet casings outside.
Possibly a second person fired at the suspect after being taken into custody. According to Outlaw, the police did not know if the two were connected.
Officers found dozens of shell casings scattered across eight blocks, according to her.
Outlaw said, “You can see there are several scenes out here.”. Outlaw said, “We’re canvassing the area to get as much as we can, to identify witnesses, to locate cameras, and to figure out why.”.
On Tuesday afternoon, police identified the victims as 20-year-old Lashyd Merritt, 29-year-old Dymir Stanton, 59-year-old Ralph Moralis and 15-year-old Daujan Brown, all pronounced dead shortly after the gunfire on Monday night; and 31-year-old Joseph Wamah, Jr., who was also found with multiple bullet wounds in a home early Tuesday.
A 2-year-old boy who was shot four times in the legs and a 13-year-old who was shot twice were in stable condition, as was a 2-year-old boy and a 33-year-old woman who were injured by shattered glass.
He heard fireworks, then heard gunshots, and saw police cars “flying by” Monday night. A man with a pistol, Eads said, was firing at the shooter. His wife was on the second floor looking out the bay window and saw the shooter actually coming down this street behind me.
“He was using my car as a shield,” Eads said.
A resident named Roger, who declined to give his last name, said he and his family were eating in the living room when they heard eight to 10 gunshots.
“Everybody thought it was fireworks but … been around here about three years so I heard it enough,” he said. “I looked out the window and seen a bunch of people running.”
Five dead in Philadelphia-area shooting spree that’s nation’s worst violence yet around July 4
After about four more shots, he thought it was over. Ten minutes later, he said, police came “flying down here,” and about five minutes later, he heard rapid gunfire outside the house.
According to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University, the Philadelphia violence was the 29th mass killing in 2023.
By this time of year, the number of people killed in such events is also the highest.
According to the database, more than 550 mass killings have taken place since 2006, in which at least 2,900 people have died and at least 2,000 have been injured.
Read Also: Shootings in Philadelphia May Have Been Random
