• Mood: accomplished

not a good day for cars in the hood....

From Penn Public safety:

At approximately 11:00am on April 16, 2007, there was an attempted auto theft from a University of Pennsylvania garage near 32nd and Convention Avenue. The garage attendant and supervisor, witnessed the attempted auto theft, and confronted the offender, at which point he brandished a weapon, and fled toward South Street. The offender first attempted to carjack two vehicles, before carjacking a driver of a white van, at point-of-gun, who was traveling on Spruce Street, near 33rd Street. Penn Police were called immediately by garage security, and were able to identify the offender in the van, resulting in a high-speed chase westbound on Spruce Street. The driver during the course of fleeing and avoiding traffic on the street, drove onto the sidewalk and struck a pedestrian (University of Pennsylvania Health System employee), who is currently in stable condition at HUP.

The driver lost control of the stolen vehicle between 40th and 41st Street and crashed into approximately four parked cars on the street. He then fled the scene northbound through a parking lot to the 200 block of Preston Street, with a Penn Police officer on foot pursuit. There was an ensuing struggle, where the offender attempted to take control of the officer’s service weapon, during the course of which, the weapon was discharged, striking the offender. He was transported to HUP in critical condition, and has since been pronounced dead at 12:37pm.

No injuries to the UPPD officers were sustained.

The entire incident is currently under a joint investigation by both the University of Pennsylvania Police Department and the Philadelphia Police Department.