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CVS thief pulls a gun on store manager when confronted at the door (updated with video)

Posted on 18 May 2016 by WestPhillyLocal.com

UPDATE (5/20/2016): Police released surveillance video from the CVS store where the robbery took place:

(5/18/2016, 17:17 p.m.): Police are looking for the man who they say stole some items at CVS at 43rd and Locust and then pulled a gun at the store manager when he tried to stop him at the entrance door. The incident, which is classified as an armed robbery, happened on Sunday night, shortly after 8 p.m.

The manager told police that he had observed the suspect placing merchandise into a black drawstring bag, and then confronted him at the entrance door and tried to retrieve the items. The suspect then pulled out a small black handgun. After seeing the gun the manager backed off and the suspect fled the store on foot, according to police. The manager followed the suspect on Locust St. toward 44th. The suspect turned south on 44th Street and walked away. Police say the robber took a hair straightener and some other unknown merchandise from the store.  Continue Reading

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Bicyclist critically injured after hit-and-run at 52nd and Spruce

Posted on 10 May 2016 by WestPhillyLocal.com

Police are searching for a driver of a white or silver vehicle involved in a hit-and-run accident near 52nd and Spruce that left a bicyclist critically injured. Police say that the crash happened at around 2:20 a.m. on Tuesday. The victim, a 46-year-old man, was thrown off his bike after the impact with the vehicle and sustained head and body injuries. He was listed in critical but stable condition at the hospital where he was rushed after the incident. The vehicle that struck the man never stopped, according to police.

Police say there were no witnesses to this crash. They’re currently reviewing surveillance videos from the area.

This is the second hit-and-run accident involving bicyclists in West Philadelphia in the past month. Last month, a 27-year-old man died from his injuries after a hit-and-run crash near 45th and Market. The driver who struck him still hasn’t been found.

On Wednesday, May 18, the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia is organizing a Ride of Silence to commemorate Philadelphia-area cyclists killed in collisions with motor vehicles.

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Woman abducted, assaulted for 11 hours on Saturday, escapes near 57th and Larchwood (updated)

Posted on 24 April 2016 by Mike Lyons

UPDATE: Police are now saying that the 20-year-old woman who was abducted and sexually assaulted in an 11-hour ordeal on Saturday, knew her attacker. No other details are available at this time.

Police are looking for a man who they believe abducted and sexually assaulted a young woman early Saturday morning and held her 11 hours before she escaped near 57th and Larchwood.

The 20-year-old woman was forced into a black vehicle at gunpoint at about 4 a.m. near 49th and Lancaster. The vehicle had tinted windows and a garbage bag over the driver’s side rear window, she told police. She escaped from the vehicle at about 3 p.m. on Saturday near 57th and Larchwood, police said.

Her abductor was described as a black male, about 23 years old, with dreadlocks and a long beard.

 

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27-year-old cyclist injured in weekend hit-and-run dies

Posted on 19 April 2016 by Mike Lyons

Jamal Morris

Jamal Morris, 27. Photo from Facebook.

A 27-year-old man who was struck by a motorist in a hit and run collision near 45th and Market early Saturday morning has died, according to police.

Jamal Morris, a 2011 Drexel graduate who lived near 53rd and Market, was pronounced dead at about 10 a.m. Monday morning. Police found him unresponsive along the street at about 3:45 a.m. on Saturday and he was taken to Presbyterian Hospital, where he remained in extremely critical condition through the weekend.

Police say that the damage to his bike suggests he had been struck by a vehicle. Police have made no arrests and, so far, have no suspects.

Morris was originally from Warwick, New York and graduated from Drexel with a degree in mechanical engineering, according to his social media profiles. He worked for the international engineering firm Amec Foster Wheeler.

Police are asking anyone with information about the case to call 215-685-3180 or 911.

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Police officer shot, wounded near 59th and Market; shooting suspect arrested (updated)

Posted on 18 April 2016 by WestPhillyLocal.com

UPDATE (2:50 p.m.): The man suspected in the shooting of 24-year-old police officer James McCullough has been arrested, according to police. 23-year-old Scott Griffin was in the possession of a gun when he was arrested around 1 p.m. on Monday.

A police officer was shot in the leg on Sunday while tackling a robbery suspect near 59th and Market, according to reports. Two suspects, including the gunman, remained at large as of Monday morning.

The shooting happened at around 8:50 p.m. when 18th District police responded to a call of a robbery and a car break-in on the 5900 block of Market Street. Police say three suspects robbed a man and took the keys to the victim’s car, a Ford Expedition. The robbery victim reportedly chased the suspects to a nearby SEPTA station at 60th and Market, beat up one of them and held him for the police. The other two suspects ran toward 59th and Salford and tried to get into a Dodge Durango, which they mistook for the robbed man’s car.

The wounded officer, identified by the authorities as , was flagged down by a woman, who owns the Dodge Durango, according to reports. He got out of the patrol car and tried to tackle one of the suspects when he was shot in the thigh. Both suspects, including the one who shot the officer, escaped. Police say McCullough fired his weapon three times at the suspect, but he still managed to flee.  Continue Reading

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Series of gunpoint robberies with similar pattern between Walnut and Pine Streets (updated)

Posted on 14 April 2016 by WestPhillyLocal.com

UPDATE (Thu, April 14, 2016): Another armed robbery attempt took place on Monday night on the 200 block of S. Melville St. (between Locust and Spruce) by the same person, police believe. It happened at around 9:20 p.m. A 27-year-old woman was walking up to her door on the block when a man approached her from behind, said that he had a gun and demanded money. The woman ran into the house and closed the door, and the man fled. Nothing was taken and no injuries were reported. In this case the suspect was described as a black male in his 20’s, thin build, 5 foot 7 inches, short hair, no facial hair. He was wearing a dark jean jacket.

April 11, 2016, 14:52 p.m.: The Southwest Detective Division is investigating a series of gunpoint robberies and robbery attempts on Walnut and Pine Streets in the past two months that may be connected.  The most recent incident was reported on Thursday, Apr. 7.

The first happened on February 18, when a man was walking near 47th and Walnut at around 6 p.m. and was approached by an unknown male who stated: “I have a gun, give me your wallet.” The man said “No” and the suspect threatened to shoot him, according to a police report. The victim then elbowed the attacker and ran to his residence a short distance away. Nothing was taken.

The suspect was described as a black male in his 20s, 6 feet tall, with medium length dreads, wearing all black.  Continue Reading

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