Police identify suspected killer of Philadelphia journalist Josh Kruger

Mr Kruger, 39, who went from sleeping on the street to working for the mayor, was fatally shot multiple times

Police in Philadelphia say they have identified and issued a warrant for the arrest of a man following the death of journalist Joshua Kruger.

Mr Kruger, 39, who went from sleeping on the street to working for the mayor, was shot multiple times and killed in the early hours of Monday.

Police have named 19-year-old Robert Davis, an acquaintance of Mr Kruger, as a suspect, though did not specify a motive. The force has a video of Mr Davis in the area prior to the shooting.

They said that Mr Kruger, who as a freelance journalist was known for urgent columns on the city’s most pressing social issues, had been trying to help Mr Davis get through life.

At a press conference on Friday Lieutenant Hamilton Marshmond said the warrant for Mr Davis’s arrest included the charges of murder and related offences and that he should be considered “armed and dangerous”.

Lt Marshmond asked Davis to surrender to the police, and said that the goal was to have him taken into custody “in a safe manner for the public, our officers and himself”.

Mr Kruger was found collapsed in the street on the 2300 block of Watkins Street with multiple gunshot wounds, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer. He was taken by ambulance to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center but died at 2.15am.

He had worked for the city of Philadelphia for more than five years, primarily within communication and social media teams. Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney paid tribute to him in an emotional statement following his death.

Josh Kruger was remembered for having 'shone bright in everything that he did’ (joshkruger.com)

“Josh cared deeply about our city and its residents, which was evident both in his public service and in his writing,” Mr Kenney said.

“His intelligence, creativity, passion, and wit shone bright in everything that he did — and his light was dimmed much too soon.”

In addition to his communications work, Mr Kruger wrote freelance articles about issues impacting the city’s LGBT+ community.