December 11, 2023
THOM CARROLL/for PhillyVoice
Two Philadelphia police officers are recovering from injuries suffered during a shootout early Sunday morning in Holmesburg, authorities say.
Two Philadelphia police officers are recovering after being wounded in a shootout in Holmesburg early Sunday morning, police said. The suspect was also still hospitalized as of Monday morning.
The shootout occurred after police attempted to pull over a man driving a Dodge Ram pickup truck on the 7300 block of Brous Avenue at 2:32 a.m., according to police. The man was suspected of firing a gun at Roosevelt Boulevard and Cottman Avenue.
The man initially pulled off to the side of the road, but when an officer approached, he fled in the truck, investigators said. he led police on a brief chase before ramming the truck into a police cruiser near Frankford Avenue and Welsh Road.
When officers emerged from the damaged cruiser, the man began firing at them, police said. One officer, age 31, was struck in his ankle and suffered a graze wound to his head. A second officer, 32, had his nose grazed by a bullet. The officers – and two others – returned fire, investigators said.
The 40-year-old man, whose identity has not been released, was shot and was in critical condition at Jefferson Torresdale Hospital as of Monday morning.
The injured officers also were treated at Jefferson Torresdale Hospital. The 32-year-old officer was released Sunday. The 31-year-old previously was shot on duty, according to 6ABC.
Acting Police Commissioner John Stanford said he been in touch with the injured officers Sunday. Both were expected to recover.
"When I said they will physically recover, it still is a heavy thing, mentally, to know that you've been shot in the head, to know that you've been shot in the face, just doing your job," Stanford said at a press conference.
There were no other injuries reported.
