Suspect arrested in fatal shooting of man found on St. Joseph's campus

A suspect in custody is accused of fatally shooting a man before dragging him on the sidewalk on St. Joseph's University campus and calling 911, according to the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office.

Tyreese Quinerley, 39, turned himself in to Lower Merion police and Montgomery County detectives just before 2 p.m. Tuesday. He will be arraigned on charges of first- and third-degree murder, according to authorities.

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The shooting happened shortly before 11 p.m. Sunday at City and Cardinal avenues. The victim was 39-year-old Jefferson Shackford, who lived "unhoused in Northwest Philadelphia," according to the district attorney's office. 

On Sunday night, Lower Merion police responded to a 911 call placed by Quinerley, who called the victim "Creek" multiple times, "as if he knew him," the district attorney's office said. Shackford reportedly went by the name "Creek" and had a tattoo of "King Creek" on his stomach.

Quinerley was at the scene when police arrived. He told officers that he "almost hit" the victim and had stopped to help him. At the scene, he told officers he did not know the victim. Quinerley was "sweating profusely" on his face and head during interactions with the officers at the scene, court documents said. Police allowed Quinerley to leave after obtaining his identification.

EMTs found a gunshot wound on Shackford's side and his arm. He was transported to Lankenau Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

Using surveillance video and eyewitness accounts, a joint investigation by Lower Merion police and Montgomery County detectives found Quinerley’s green Chevrolet Express van was speeding and "driving erratically." The vehicle stopped for a red light at City Avenue and Cardinal Avenue, an intersection that runs through St. Joe's campus, around 10:45 p.m. 

While the van was stopped, the driver got out of the vehicle and fired two shots into it, according to authorities. Video showed Quinerley dragging Shackford out of the van a few minutes later and placing him on the sidewalk.

A cellphone determined to belong to Quinerley was recovered by detectives in a fenced construction area about 30 feet from where the victim was found. Call records showed Quinerley's cellphone had been in communication with the cellphone found on Shackford's body. Quinerley's phone records also showed he was talking with a woman shortly after he called 911. That woman was interviewed by police and confirmed that Quinerley and Shackford knew each other from "the neighborhood," according to the district attorney's office.

Quinerley has an "extensive criminal history," according to court documents, including an arrest and guilty plea to aggravated assault in 2009, as well as arrests and guilty pleas to possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver in 2014 and 2016. Due to these instances, Quinerley was not allowed to be in possession of a firearm, according to authorities.