Stray gunfire hits woman crossing street, narrowly misses sleeping woman in Philly home
PHILADELPHIA - Two women were caught in the crossfire after a shooting erupted at an intersection in North Philadelphia early Wednesday morning.
The first victim, a 25-year-old woman, was found collapsed in the middle of the road at 6th Street and Lehigh Avenue around 2 a.m.
She was rushed to the hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg, and is said to be in stable condition.
Police say cameras captured the moment the woman was struck by a stray bullet just half a block away, where 19 spent shell casings were found.
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One of those bullets also went through the bedroom window of a 67-year-old woman.
It narrowly missed her as she slept in her bed, according to authorities, who say she is "very lucky."
Police believe two semi-automatic weapons were discharged during the shooting.
"I just thank God that nothing happened to her, you know?" Pablo Fernandez talked about his aunt’s near miss being shot by a stray bullet in her own home.
After 11 years living near North 6th Street and West Lehigh Avenue, he said he hasn’t felt fear like he did in the overnight hours of Wednesday, with gunshots nearby, ducking for cover on the floor and then his 67-year-old aunt frantically calling him.
"I ran down. She was up. When she opened that door, she was shaking. She was scared," Fernandez explained the scene. "They almost killed her. They’re lucky they didn’t kill her because it was two o’clock in the morning. If it had been at 2 p.m. that bullet would’ve grabbed her."
The stray bullet that went through Fernandez’ aunt’s bedroom window was one of 17 shots fired just before 2 a.m., according to police.
They say a small, black SUV exchanged words with a group in a lot at 6th and Lehigh. The SUV then turned west down Lehigh and when it reached Marshall Street, two guns fired down the block.
No one in the group was hit, but the 25-year-old woman was hit.
Captain James Kearney, with the Philadelphia Police Department Shooting Investigation Group, stated, "It’s tragic to think that you could just be walking across the street and no fault of your own, get in the middle of people firing indiscriminately at a corner. In a way, we’re fortunate that there weren’t more people injured, but what a tragedy. 25-years-old, walking across the street, taking a gunshot. that’s not good."