Teen hurt, house hit by gunfire after more than 25 shots fired in North Philadelphia shooting
18-year-old shot, bullets hit cars and rowhome in North Philly
An 18-year-old man was shot and wounded on the 1500 block of Cambridge Street around 4:00 a.m. Thursday, North Philadelphia police said. He is in stable condition, while bullets also hit parked cars and a rowhome occupied by a woman and several others, according to authorities.
PHILADELPHIA - An 18-year-old was shot early Thursday morning after more than 25 gunshots rang out on a North Philadelphia street. A nearby home and multiple cars were also struck by gunfire, police say.
What we know:
The shooting happened around 4 a.m. on the 1500 block of Cambridge Street.
When officers arrived at the scene, they discovered more than 25 spent shell casings scattered on the highway and sidewalk.
There was initially no victim found, but ballistic evidence included two parked, unattended vehicles and a residential property that were struck by gunfire. A bullet went through a front living room window, passing just a few feet over a resident who was lying on the couch, before lodging in the wall, police said.
Inside the property hit by gunfire, police checked on five adults and two teenagers. No one inside was injured, but the resident who was on the couch where the bullet passed overhead was described as "very shaken up."
About a half hour after police responded to the shooting, authorities were notified that an 18-year-old male was found with a gunshot wound to his leg on the 1400 block of Poplar Street, a block away from the shooting scene. Medics transported him to Temple Hospital where he was listed in stable condition.
Police said the victim was able to speak and told investigators he was shot in the area of 1500 Cambridge Street.
Dig deeper:
The 18-year-old shooting victim told police he was "just minding his business when he was struck by stray gunfire," police said, and he did not believe he was the intended target.
"We're not certain that this time if he's telling us an accurate story or not, because it took us a half hour to find that victim only a half a block away," Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said.
Police also confirmed that the victim lives in West Philadelphia, "nowhere near this location," but was found nearby on Poplar Street.
Police said the shooter appears to be a male in a dark sweatshirt, jeans and possibly white and red sneakers. He was last seen going west on the 1500 block of Cambridge Street on foot. Surveillance cameras on both sides of the street captured the incident and detectives are reviewing the footage. Police have not determined if there was more than one shooter and are conducting ballistic tests on the shell casings.
"This is normally a pretty quiet neighborhood, and there is a lot of new construction, new homes in the area. So it's normally a quiet area. So I'm sure the residents are very, very shaken up, especially the individuals that were in that property where the bullet went through the front window," Small said.
Residents react to shooting and police investigation
Local perspective:
Neighbors shared their fear and shock about the gunfire.
"What you could hear it sounded like it was kind of like automatic. It early in the morning, and I threw her off the bed and covered her on the ground," said Nicholas Colon.
"I heard gunshots and immediately went to the floor and he was over me and said stay down and we waited after two minutes. It stopped, but I was still on the floor scared it would happen again," said Leslie Murrell.
Police say there is surveillance footage from several cameras on the block that may help them identify the shooter. Small said, "So we’re pretty confident that there’s going to be numerous angles recorded for the shooting of an 18-year-old male."
What we don't know:
Police have not determined if more than one shooter fired the shots, as ballistic tests are pending. It is also unclear if the 18-year-old male was the intended target or merely caught in stray gunfire.
The investigation is ongoing and no arrests have been reported.
The Source: Information from Philadelphia police and interviews conducted by FOX 29.