August 26, 2015
Philadelphia Police say a fleeing man was shot by officers who responded to a reported robbery early Wednesday morning.
Two officers from the 18th District were sent to 60th and Spruce streets around 6 a.m. after a call was placed about a robbery made at gun point.
According to police, the suspect was described as a male of an unknown race wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt. The officers said they saw a man wearing the described clothing when they arrived at the scene.
The man fled on foot after spotting them, police say, and one officer pursued in their patrol vehicle while the other chased the man on foot. Both officers reported seeing a gun in the man's right hand during the pursuit.
According to the officers' accounts, the man was running down Walnut Street westbound, then turned and stopped on the 100 block of South 61st Street and pointed his weapon in the direction of the officer pursuing on foot, appearing to wait for him to turn the corner.
The driving officer said he pulled alongside the man and ordered him to drop his weapon, and when he did not comply, fired his gun and hit the man in his abdomen.
The man was taken to Penn-Presbyterian Hospital where he entered surgery. His current condition is unknown.
The complainant who made the robbery call positively identified a semi-automatic handgun recovered at the scene as the weapon used and the man shot as the person who robbed him, according to police.
The two officers involved have been placed on administrative leave as the department's internal affairs unit investigates the incident.
According to a new protocol regarding police-involved shootings, the identities of the officers involved will be released within the next 72 hours. That policy has been strongly opposed by the Philadelphia police union, whose leaders have called the policy "ridiculous."
