Philadelphia shooting: Accused shooter held without bail

PHILADELPHIA — Five people were killed and two children were wounded in a shooting in southwest Philadelphia on Monday, police said.

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Police said the shooter, who was wearing a bulletproof vest and armed with an AR-style rifle, appeared to have fired at random in the city’s Kingsessing neighborhood. He has been identified as 40-year-old Kimbrady Carriker.

The slain victims were identified as Daujan Brown, 15; Lashyd Merritt, 20; Dymir Stanton, 29; Joseph Wamah Jr., 31; and Ralph Moralis, 59. Two boys, 2 and 13, were shot and injured while two others, a 2-year-old boy and a 33-year-old woman, were injured by glass.

Victim’s sister: ‘I have nothing but anger’

Update 2:45 p.m. EDT July 5: Two sisters of Joseph Wamah Jr., the 31-year-old killed in Monday’s random shooting, shared memories of their brother at a news conference Wednesday.

“I still can’t believe that my brother is gone, and I just don’t understand why this happened,” Joseph Wamah’s twin sister, Josephine, said. “He was a kind soul. He was nice to everyone. He was good to everyone.”

She remembered her brother as a skilled artist and lousy cook who was “gorgeous inside and out.”

“I’m going to miss that beautiful smile. I really am,” she said. “He took care of his family.”

Joseph Wamah’s other sister, Jasmine, questioned why Carricker shot at random rather than killing himself.

“I have nothing but anger,” she said as she got emotional during Wednesday’s news conference. “I’m sorry.”

Police said Joseph Wamah was found shot several times hours after the initial victims of Monday’s shooting were found. He was pronounced dead by paramedics around 12:35 a.m. Tuesday.

— Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

Will found in search of suspect’s house

Update 2:40 p.m. EDT July 5: Prosecutors said officials found a will written in Carricker’s handwriting and dated June 23 during a search of his house.

Assistant District Attorney Robert Wainwright said authorities also found a 380-caliber handgun and ammunition. He added that investigators recovered a 9mm handgun from Carriker when he was apprehended. The gun, which Wainwright identified as an untraceable ghost gun, was not fired on Monday.

Carricker shot several people with an AR-15 rifle, officials said.

Authorities declined to discuss the content of the will.

— Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

Roommates say suspected gunman had been ‘agitated’ in recent days

Update 2:30 p.m. EDT July 5: Assistant District Attorney Joanne Pescatore said that in recent days, the man suspected of killing five people in an apparently random shooting on the streets of Philadelphia had been “exhibiting abnormal behavior.”

She emphasized that Carriker’s roommates were not at fault for Monday’s shooting, but added, “I just think that maybe if somebody had called or gotten some kind of help for that particular person, this could have been avoided.”

Carriker lived in a home with seven other residents, officials said.

“I believe they thought he was getting more and more agitated as the days were passing, and their way of dealing with it was just to avoid it and not interfere with him even though they all lived in the same house,” Pescatore said.

She declined to specify what Carriker’s roommates saw and urged people who notice similar behavior to contact authorities for help.

— Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

Accused shooter held without bail

Update 10:30 a.m. EDT July 5: A judge on Wednesday ordered that the person accused of opening fire in Philadelphia on Monday be held without bail, CNN reported.

Kimbrady Carriker faces nearly a dozen charges, including first-degree murder, according to WTXF-TV.

Authorities continue to investigate.

— Theresa Seiger, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

Victims identified

Update 3 p.m. EDT July 4: Police have identified the five people who were killed in Monday night’s shooting. They have also identified the suspected shooter.

Police said charges are pending against Kimbrady Carriker, 40, WTXF reported.

The district attorney during a news conference Tuesday afternoon said that the alleged gunman will face multiple counts of murder and first-degree assault.

The Associated Press said the victims are:

• Daujan Brown, 15
• Lashyd Merritt, 20
• Dymir Stanton, 29
• Joseph Wamah Jr., 31
• Ralph Moralis, 59

A two-year-old boy was shot four times in the legs while a 13-year-old was shot twice in the legs, the AP reported.

Glass injured two other people, including a toddler, WTXF reported.

— Natalie Dreier, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

5th victim found

Update 8:05 a.m. EDT July 4: A fifth body was found in the same Philadelphia neighborhood where the shooting occurred. Police believe the victim was shot by the person who opened fire Monday night, CNN reported.

Police said the fifth victim, a 31-year-old man, was chased into his home, shot and killed, The Associated Press reported.

Police do not know why the gunman opened fire, shooting for several city blocks, or if he had a connection with any of the victims, CNN reported.

“We’re canvassing the area to get as much as we can — to identify witnesses, to identify where cameras are located, and do everything we can to figure out the ‘why’ behind this happening,” Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said.

A second person had been taken into custody who police said may have returned fire with the first suspect, but officials did not know if there was a connection between the two men, the AP reported.

— Natalie Dreier, Cox Media Group National Content Desk

4 men killed, 2 children wounded, police say

Update 11:07 p.m. EDT July 3: During a news conference Monday night, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said there were six victims shot, with four people fatally wounded.

She said the deceased victims were males, ages 20, 22 and 59. The fourth person, also a male and referred to as a “John Doe,” was “in the 16 to 21 (age) range,” Outlaw said.

The other victims were boys, ages 2 and 13, Outlaw said. Both children were in stable condition, she said.

Outlaw added that there are two people in custody, including the suspected shooter. Outlaw said the suspected shooter was arrested without incident.

The shooting suspect had a bulletproof vest, multiple magazines, an “AR-type rifle,” a handgun and a police scanner, Outlaw told reporters.

Outlaw said it was unclear what the suspected shooter’s motive was.

“At this point, all we know is that this person decided to leave their home and target individuals,” she told reporters.

Police initially reported a total of eight shooting victims, but Outlaw revised that number to six during the news conference, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.

Original report: At least two juveniles were among the victims, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported. Their conditions were unclear.

Police said a suspect was in custody, according to the newspaper.

The shooting occurred in the Kingsessing neighborhood of Philadelphia, WPVI-TV reported. Police were called to the area at about 8:30 p.m. EDT, according to the television station.

Within minutes, police found four victims at several locations, and they were taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, the Inquirer reported. Four more victims arrived at area hospitals by private vehicles, according to the newspaper.

Shortly after 10 p.m. EDT, police said that one of the juveniles was being transported from Penn Presbyterian Medical Center to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the Inquirer reported. The condition of the other juvenile was unclear.

Police said a male wearing a ballistic vest was apprehended at about 8:40 p.m. EDT, the Inquirer reported. They added that a rifle, a handgun and additional magazines of ammunition were recovered in a nearby alley.

“Horrified by the reports of a shooting in Southwest Philadelphia,” Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney tweeted. “My heart is with the loved ones and families of everyone involved, and I send my prayers to the victims.”

It was unclear what led to the shooting.