All involved in shooting of critically injured Philadelphia officer in custody, police say

PHILADELPHIA — Philadelphia police say they believe they have everyone involved in a shooting that seriously injured a police officer after a traffic stop.

The 31-year-old police officer and his partner stopped a car carrying four people shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday in the Kensington neighborhood of northeast Philadelphia, city Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel told reporters Saturday evening .

Officers were taking inventory of the vehicle when they saw someone with a gun holster, Bethel said. That person fled, shooting three times and hitting a police officer in the neck, he said. The injured officer was taken to Temple University Hospital in critical condition, Bethel said at a news conference outside the hospital.

“I often come here with a lot of anger about what my men and women have to go through,” Bethel said. But he said he had just returned from a gathering of 75 to 100 police officers in which they held hands to pray for the officer. and he stood before the public in this case to ask people throughout the city to do the same.

The shooting suspect and everyone in the car “as well as a person of interest involved in the shooting” were in custody, Bethel said.

“We believe that all those responsible are in custody,” he said, telling reporters that no one else was being sought.

Bethel said the officer's partner “definitely” returned fire, but there was no initial indication that the injured officer had fired.

Mayor Cherelle Parker said in a social media post that the officer, who has been on the force for 6 1/2 years, was “on life support” using a breathing machine. She also asked residents to pray for “a husband, a father and a son” who was doing “noble work in very difficult circumstances.”

“He didn’t expect to be fighting for his life,” she said.

Gov. Josh Shapiro said in a social media post Sunday that he and the first lady were joining others in praying for the injured officer.

“His family is in our thoughts, as are his fellow officers, who were forced to take one of their own to hospital last night,” he said.

Over the past eight months, gunfire has killed one Philadelphia officer and injured eight others.

In October, Officer Richard Mendez was killed and another officer shot and injured while investigating an alleged car break-in in a parking lot at Philadelphia International Airport. Three New Jersey men are awaiting trial in the case. Earlier this month, three police officers were injured in a shooting at a Northeast Philadelphia home after an argument, apparently over a video game, erupted into gunfire.

In December, an exchange of gunfire following the pursuit of a suspect injured two police officers. In January, a police officer was shot at a convenience store and a suspect was killed by another officer. A few days later, a police officer was shot in the hand while executing an arrest warrant.

In neighboring Delaware County in February, authorities said two police officers were shot and wounded from an East Lansdowne home before it burned to the ground. Six sets of remains were found, and the suspect and four of his relatives – two adults and two minors – died from gunshot wounds while a child died from smoke inhalation, police said. authorities.