Eight teenagers shot 30 times at Philadelphia bus stop
Police said two of the teenagers are in a critical condition following the shooting
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Two people are in a critical condition after eight teenagers were shot more than 30 times while boarding a bus in northeast Philadelphia on Wednesday afternoon, police have said.
The victims, all 15 to 17 years old, were shot as they boarded a bus near a Dunkin’ shop at around 3pm. All of the teenagers are students at Northeast High School, which is more than a mile from where the shooting took place.
Police said two of the teenagers are in a critical condition following the shooting, including a 16-year-old boy who was hit nine times. The remaining victims – six boys and a girl – were said to be in stable condition.
At a news conference, the city’s police commissioner Kevin Bethel said the students were waiting for the bus at around 3pm when three people emerged from a car, which was waiting at the scene, and fired more than 30 shots. Police said the attackers were masked and the car was a dark blue Hyundai Sonata.
Two buses – a Route 18 bus and a Route 67 bus – were also hit by gunfire, but there were no reports of injuries to passengers or the driver.
Police are now asking for the public’s assistance in identifying the suspects but warned against approaching them.
Surveillance camera video released by authorities shows a Hyundai with darkly tinted windows sitting in a parking lot before three figures in dark clothing burst from the front passenger side and both rear doors and run across the lot, apparently toward the bus stop.
Police said the footage shows one person remained in the vehicle and steered the car towards the three suspects, who returned and quickly piled back inside before the car sped off.
Authorities added that the car was missing an “H” emblem on the front grill.
The incident was the city’s fourth shooting involving SEPTA buses in the past week, three of which were fatal.
A 37-year-old man died after he was shot the day before while riding a SEPTA bus, while on Monday, a 17-year-old student was killed and four other people were wounded when gunfire erupted at a bus stop. The victims included two women who were riding on a bus.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, around 11:30 pm, a 27-year-old man was killed by another passenger moments after they both got off a bus. No arrests have been made in any of the shootings.
“It’s hard to sit here and see that in three days we have had 11 juveniles shot while going and coming from school,” Commissioner Bethel said at a news conference on Wednesday.
Following the shootings, residents told the Associated Press that the area has become more unsafe in recent years.
“I think it’s really sad and just dangerous that I don’t even want to walk my daughter out here,” Jessica Healy said.
“It’s not safe … I don’t like it here. I would like to move. But my boyfriend has a good job here, so this is why we stay,” she added.
Commissioner Bethel said additional resources will be deployed across Philadelphia to address the series of shootings and to determine whether the incidents Wednesday and Monday are linked.