Philadelphia police officer praised for saving lives of students shot at SEPTA bus stop
PHILADELPHIA - Eight students were wounded when shooters opened fire at a SEPTA bus stop last week, but police say they are all lucky to be alive thanks to a fellow officer.
"This officer's quick-thinking and application of a tourniquet may have saved the lives of many of the young people who were shot that day," Police Commissioner Kevin J. Bethel announced during a press conference Monday.
His name is Christian Rodriguez, and doctors credit him for stopping the bleeding long enough to keep the teens alive as they were rushed to the hospital.
FOX 29 first met Rodriguez back in 2019 when he was praised for helping a student tie his necktie just in time for his graduation day.
Philadelphia mass shooting: 8 students shot at SEPTA bus stop; 3 shooters, driver sought
Eight Philadelphia students were shot as they waited to board a SEPTA bus on their way home from school Wednesday afternoon. 11 students have been shot in the city on their way to or from school so far this week.
The officer became a beacon of hope yet again when chaos and tragedy struck his city, leaving seven teenage boys and a teen girl hit by gunfire while waiting to board a SEPTA bus.
Around 30 shots were brazenly fired towards the group of students by three masked shooters caught on surveillance footage.
Two of those suspects, identified as 18-year-old Anhile Buggs and Jamaal Tucker, have been taken into custody.
Police say they also recovered a "fully automatic machine gun" that matched bullet cases found at the crime scene.
A third shooter, along with the suspected driver, are still being sought by police.