Police locate vehicle connected to shooting that left 7 people injured in North Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Police have located the vehicle being sought in connection with a shooting in North Philadelphia that left seven people injured on Wednesday night.
The car was located in the 6300 block of Magnolia Street in East Mt. Airy on Thursday morning. It was described as a 2004 to 2008 charcoal gray Acura TSX.
Around 10 a.m., undercover officers began watching the vehicle after getting a tip about its whereabouts.
At one point a man got into the car. The officers swooped in and took the man in for questioning. Commissioner Kevin Bethel said the individual was armed with a weapon.
"We're going to work diligently to bring in those who engaged in that violence yesterday, but also recognize we have a responsibility to have officers out in that area to minimize the retaliation," Bethel noted.
The vehicle is registered to a woman, so police are trying to uncover the man's connection to the car.
Sources also say search warrants are in motion for three homes: on the 6300 block of Morton in East Mt. Airy - a block from where the Acura was found - along with the 4700 block of Frankford and the 5000 block of Jackson Street in Frankford, where sources believe the car owner may stay.
Police say at least three suspects are being sought in connection with the shooting that happened around 6:30 p.m. on the 2800 block of North Bambrey Street.
Sources say an argument between juveniles led to parents getting involved. A short time later, police say the Acura pulled up, at least three people emerged and opened fire.
One of them fired 17 shots down the block from the intersection.
The victims, who are between the ages of 16 and 46, were all shot while standing outside. Police say one is in critical condition, while the rest are stable at an area hospital.
Once on scene, officers found two women who were shot in the leg. They were taken to Temple University Hospital.
Police say a 16-year-old girl, who suffered graze wounds to the abdomen and a leg, was taken to St. Christopher's Hospital for Children.
The four other people who were shot - two men and two women - showed up at the hospital with gunshot wounds.
"We believe there's many, many people that were out and that's why there are so many shooting victims," said Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small. "We believe they shot into this crowd intentionally and someone in the crowd may have been the intended target."
Bethel says shootings and homicides are down about 40% across the city compared to last year thanks to strategic police work and community collaboration.
"I'm really, really proud of what they've been able to do so far this year and we're going to work hard to bring those individuals to justice," said Bethel.
Resident Anna Johnson, a school teacher, said the shooting - during Juneteenth celebrations - is sad and alarming.
"Families want to protect their children and so things can start off very small with children, and become escalated when adults become involved because cooler minds are not prevailing as you would hope," she said.
"Escalation. The failure to pause. Also, I think people of all backgrounds need resources around trauma-informed responses and how to de-escalate situations, how to mediate things so there is no loss of life," Johnson added.
Anyone with information on the suspects is asked to call police at 215-686-TIPS.
