Family holds vigil, grieves for man fatally shot by Philadelphia police as they look for answers
KENSINGTON - A vigil was held in Kensington for 27-year-old Eddie Irizarry, shot and killed by Philadelphia police during a traffic stop Monday that quickly turned deadly.
"I’m here with my whole family because we want justice. They murdered my nephew, here, cold blood and I want answers," Zoraida Garcia, Irizarry's aunt, said.
Answers because of new information from Philadelphia police that says Irizarry was in the car and never got out of his car when the officer fired his weapon six times.
Initial reports from police stated Irizarry got out of his car, armed with a knife and lunged at officers. A narrative the family says didn’t sit right with them.
"We know that was not him. Impossible. You tell that boy to sit down? He would sit down. He was a good kid. There was no need for that," Eddie’s uncle said. "They shot him six times, three in the face and one in the neck and two in the chest. For what?"
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Family and friends gathered on the 100 block of Willard Street Wednesday with balloons, candles and lots of support as they grieve the loss of their beloved Junito.
"He was the humblest guy you could know. He wasn’t a violent person and, like I told the others, he had a knife as a tool," Irizarry’s sister said. "He never had the knife as a weapon. Since he used to live in Puerto Rico and we were kids, he always had a knife on him."
After an emotional moment of prayer, the family released balloons in honor of a beloved brother, son and nephew.
Irizarry’s dad, who only speaks Spanish, talked with FOX 29’s Shaynah Ferreira about his grief. "No hay nada que me lo va Volver pa tras mi muchachito." [Translation, "There’s nothing that could bring back my little boy."]
He added he believes the officers must pay for what they did, "Lo que hizo la policia lo hive mal." [Translation, "The police did wrong."]
"Lamentablemente policia asi no necesitamos aqui. Necesitamos policias que estan preparados, fisica y mentalmente para abrigar con estas situaciones. Por que parece a cualquiera le mata." [Translation, "Sadly, we don’t need police officers like that here. We need police officers that are mentally and physically prepared to handle these situations. Because, if that’s the case, they could kill anyone."]