Saleem West was the victim of an ongoing, and now violent dispute between two groups of teens in North Philadelphia.
West, 16, was riding his bike last Sunday down West Sedgley Avenue when he was ambushed by two other teens who opened fire and shot West in the back as he tried to get away.
Police aren't characterizing the dispute as a "gang" problem, but they are troubled by the violence and baffled because they don't know exactly what the dispute is over or why it triggered West's murder, according to Lt. Norman Davenport.
"You know when you have homicides every day, sometimes you can become desensitized," Davenport said Friday as he announced the arrest of two teens police say were the gunmen. "But when you have a 16-year-odl riding a bike with his companion ... and he's shot in the middle of a Sunday afternoon, it's troubling."
Raheem Feaster and Tyreen Johnson — both 17 — were arrested and charged as adults with murder, attempted murder, conspiracy and related offenses.
Feaster was picked up two days after West's murder for a second shooting, according to Davenport. Police are working to determine if the two are connected and they've launched a joint investigation involving the departments Homicide Division, Northwest Detectives Division and North Central Detectives.
Davenport said he couldn't say if the violence was "gang stuff" but "I just know we can't continue having teens with weapons killing other teens." He asked the people in the community to please come forward and "give us any intelligence."
West was gunned down on November 1 as he and a 15-year-old friend rode their bikes down the 2200 block of West Sedgley Avenue. Davenport said the gunmen drove past them on the street, parked their car, got out and ambushed the teens, firing off more than a dozen rounds.
A man is dead after being run over by a car as he laid in the middle of a Holmsburg street, Philadelphia police said.
The victim, believed to be in his 20s, was struck along the 6800 block of Torresdale Avenue around 3 a.m.
Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small tells NBC10 some drivers came upon the man, stopped and tried to get him to move. A SEPTA bus also pulled over and the driver tried to help.
"He was semiconscious, he was groggy," Small said. "Witnesses don't know whether this male was intoxicated or suffering from some sort of medical problem."
While the bystanders were attempting to wake the man, a Pontiac Grand Am sedan came down the street. The other drivers tried to flag him down, but couldn't catch the driver's attention.
Amid the confusion, the Grand Am ran over the man in the street, killing him, Small said. Paramedics took his body to Aria Torresdale Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Police are working to identify the man, who wasn't carrying ID, and determine what led him to the street.
Charges against the sedan driver aren't expected.
"Right now, it looks like a very bizarre and tragic auto accident," Small said.
Following an outbreak of violence across Paris Friday evening, Philadelphia Police said it was alerting officers to make extra checks on specific locations around the city.
In a statement, Lt. John Stanford urged the public to be extra vigilant and to "notify us if they see any suspicious activity occuring in our City."
Stanford said the department had not received and credible threats to the city. "we will also increase our presence at sporting events this weekend just to ensure that we are visible to all and ensuring safety."
Meanwhile, Gov. Tom Wolf said in a statement that there were no "credible or increased threats" to Pennsylvanians but that "Pennsylvania State Police and Office of Homeland Security are in communication with the FBI and other federal agencies regarding the attacks in Paris and are continuing to monitor the situation for any changes."
The man accused of dragging a Philadelphia police officer after trying to flee a stop has been charged.
Anthony Brown has been charged with aggravated assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person and related offenses after he allegedly dragged a police officer about 1/4 of a block of Haworth Street.
The ordeal began when police stopped a vehicle they believed was stolen on the 1600 block of Granite Street at 8:35 p.m. Wednesday. Police said Brown then sped off, dragging the police officer halfway down the block.
Another police vehicle pursued leading to a chase which ended when the suspect crashed into another vehicle traveling on the 1900 block of Pratt Street, officials said.
Brown, the driver in the civilian vehicle and the officer were all injured in the incident.
A 16-year-old student has been charged with a felony count of aggravated assault and a misdemeanor of recklessly endangering another person after she allegedly pushed a teacher during a pep rally, according to Lehigh County District Attorney James B. Martin.
The Dieruff High School student allegedly pushed the 51-year-old teacher, causing her to fall down steps, during a pep rally at the school on November 6th. The teacher then tried to take the students ID card. The student responded by punching the teacher in the left shoulder. The teacher was trying to control a group of students who were trying to go down the bleachers.
The teacher was taken to a hospital for treatment to injuries to her back, shoulder, arm, and right jaw.
A juvenile hearing is set for Monday before a Lehigh County Judge.
Jessica Ross was catching up with friends over dinner in Paris, just off the iconic Avenue des Champs-Élysées, when her phone began to light up with messages of horror happening blocks away.
Explosions at the stadium. Shootings at restaurants. Rumors of terrorist gunmen roaming through the city.
Each dispatch seemed to bring the violence closer to their eatery in the popular 8th arrondissement (a French term for neighborhood).
Worried they could become a target, the Willingboro, New Jersey native and her four visitors from North Jersey searched for a place to hide. Down to the basement they went, far away from stone building’s avenue-facing windows.
“We didn’t know who was the target at the time,” said the 30-year-old, who moved to the French capital a few weeks ago. “[We] just hid out there, just to be safe."
They called the U.S. Embassy for help. Officials told Ross to stay away for fear the American outpost could come under siege.
“They told us to go to the nearest hotel. So we went there and they were completely booked. There were military men and officials all over the streets last night blocking off roads, checking inside cars,” Ross said.
“I was trying to remain calm for my friends because it was their first time in Paris,” she said.
A group of terrorists — apparently with ties to ISIS — carried out a sophisticated, multipronged attack across Paris Friday night, French officials said.
Three suicide bombers exploded themselves outside Stade de France — the nation’s main soccer stadium — as France played Germany in a match. Gunmen rolled up to at least four restaurants and bars in the 10th and 11th arrondissements and used assault rifles to shoot people as they ate dinner. Officials said four terrorists ambushed a packed American concert at The Bataclan, a popular music venue. Once inside, witnesses said some threw grenades into the crowd, while others executed concertgoers.
At least 129 people were killed in the attacks and more than 350 were injured, officials said. It’s the worst loss of life in the city since World War II. U.S. officials said some of the injured are American. All eight terrorists are believed to be dead.
As Ross tried to get her guests back to their Airbnb apartment and make her way home, her roommate, 26-year-old Joanna Maziarz, tried to figure out why police had flooded the city streets.
Maziarz, who is from the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan and has lived abroad for more than three years, was just two blocks away from The Bataclan — the scene of the mass execution of some 89 concertgoers.
“For me, it was that sense that you don’t feel that safe or people that were nearby. They weren’t told at all what was going on, but police were waiving guns at them,” she said.
She didn’t learn what had happened until she got home and Ross explained what was happening.
“I could’ve gone dancing just two blocks from there. You kind of [wonder] why there isn’t this major alert going out?” Maziarz said.
The women spent the night fielding calls and messages from family and friends back in the United States worried about their safety.
Paris remains subdued Saturday, the women said, as people try to cope with the reality of what happened.
“It just sounds so quiet,” Ross said. “I can’t even put words together. I’m just glad that I’m safe, and my friends are safe."
A house caught fire in Upper Darby Saturday afternoon.
The 2-alarm blaze started at a home on Victory Avenue around 3:45 p.m. Firefighters were eventually able to bring the flames under control around 4:30 p.m.
No one was hurt in the fire. Officials continue to investigate the cause.
Officials are searching for a woman who they say dropped off an emaciated dog outside an animal shelter in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania.
The dog, named Annie, was discovered in a crate outside the Peaceable Kingdom animal shelter on MacArthur Road Thursday morning. Suzy Sora, a manager at Peaceable Kingdom, told NBC10 Annie weighed slightly over six pounds, had open wounds and was covered in fleas when she was found.
Officials later released a surveillance photo of the woman who they believe dropped Annie off. If you have any information on her identity, please call the Peaceable Kingdom Tip Hotline at 610-709-6454 or Dog Law Enforcement Officer Orlando Aguirre at 484-223-9107.
A Facebook page was created showing Annie’s continued recovery at Peaceable Kingdom. If you would like to donate money to help with her recovery, you can send it through PayPal at Pk.medical.fund@gmail.com.
A motorcyclist died following a crash on Rt. 42 in Gloucester Township, New Jersey Saturday afternoon.
The unidentified victim collided with an SUV in the southbound lanes of Rt. 42 near milemarker 8.9. The victim later died from his or her injuries.
No one inside the SUV was hurt during the accident. Officials continue to investigate.
