Bloody 24 Hours Leaves Three Dead Blocks Away From Each Other In Kensington
Murder and suicide left three bodies lifeless this weekend in Kensington. The two incidents were unrelated but equally gruesome: One happened on Saturday afternoon at the 3500 block of Emerald Street and the other on Sunday sometime around 4:15 a.m. on the 1800 block of East Thayer Street.
Google Maps says it’s a seven minute walk from one crime scene to the other.
The first crime scene (3500 of Emerald Street) was ruled a murder/suicide after a barrage of shots were fired at Philadelphia Police officers. Around 2:30 Saturday afternoon, police responded to a call citing gunshots. When officers arrived, an individual who has yet to be identified fired multiple rounds at the officers as they attempted to get out of their cruiser.
One neighborhood resident described the scene to The Spirit:
Witness said "I just heard pop pop pop pop, shit was crazy."
— Spirit Newspapers (@TheSpiritNews) June 13, 2015
Chief Inspector Joe Sullivan told a group of reporters that a SWAT team at a nearby community event came to the aid of the officers who were pinned behind their car. The shooter had barricaded himself inside of a house. Neighbors around the home where the shooter was barricaded were picked up by a SEPTA bus, evacuated from the area, and taken to Webster Elementary School for their own safety.
Residents in nearby homes evacuated. pic.twitter.com/CageGjNZGq
— Spirit Newspapers (@TheSpiritNews) June 13, 2015
Philadelphia Police sent in robots with camera equipment into the home. The robots confirmed that the man with the gun had killed someone before taking his own life.
Police were using a robot camera to look into house. EMS on standby. pic.twitter.com/N5SmHwDndG
— Spirit Newspapers (@TheSpiritNews) June 13, 2015
One resident who didn’t wish to be identified told The Spirit that she knew the shooter:
According to neighbor the individual is high off "wet," was shooting at police.
— Spirit Newspapers (@TheSpiritNews) June 13, 2015
Wet is often times a cigarette, blunt, or joint dipped in PCP. The dissociative chemical can have some very strange effects on people:
Less than 24 hours after the murder/suicide on Emerald Street, a 22 year-old male was shot multiple times on the 1800 block of East Thayer Street. He was pronounced dead on the scene. Police say the victim was shot in the legs, backside, and in back of the head. At the time of writing police did not have a suspect.
