Questions raised about security measures at Phila. Int'l Airport after officer killed in shooting
Even though the shooting happened in a public space, there were no surveillance cameras in the airport parking lots.
PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- An officer-involved shooting that left one Philadelphia police officer dead and another injured on Thursday night is raising questions about security measures at the Philadelphia International Airport.
The shooting happened in an airport parking garage just after 11 p.m.
As a result, 50-year-old Officer Richard Mendez was killed, and 60-year-old Officer Raul Ortiz was hospitalized.
Even though the shooting happened in a public space, there were no surveillance cameras in the airport parking lots. This means that there is no video evidence of what happened to the two officers.
There have also been several car thefts at the airport in recent months.
This year, Philadelphia police reported 112 car thefts and 79 break-ins at lots surrounding the airport.
In June, surveillance video captured a group of car thieves lining cars up at the front gate of a rental company, with a masked man at the cashier's window.
He was pointing a gun and forcing the employee to open the gate.
The Philadelphia Police Department says since January, there have been nearly 25 organized robberies at rental agencies around Philadelphia International Airport following the same pattern.
In response, the police department increased patrols and was using other security measures in the airport garages to stop car thefts and break-ins.
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