First charges filed in West Philadelphia mass shooting

Murder charges have been brought against one of the men who was wounded in the mass shooting that left three people dead and six other people injured Sunday in West Philadelphia.

Tahir Shoatz, 28, will face three counts of homicide, five counts of aggravated assault and related offenses, police said Tuesday.

He was shot in his abdomen, both shoulders and right knee during the exchange of gunfire and hospitalized with nonlife-threatening injuries, according to investigators. Shoatz’s legal representation could not be identified through court documents Tuesday.

Shoatz is the first suspect arrested in the shooting, which occurred at around 2 a.m. on the 1200 block of N. Alden Street in the Carroll Park neighborhood. An argument at a large outdoor party turned physical, then escalated into a “gun battle,” Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said at a news conference Monday.

Crime scene investigators recovered more than 36 spent shell casings from firearms using multiple different calibers, police said. Two guns were found at the scene and a third was recovered from a local medical center, according to the PPD.

Bethel, in a post Tuesday on X, formerly known as Twitter, said the investigation is not over but that he was proud of detectives and prosecutors for beginning “to bring a modicum of justice to the victims and their families.”

Authorities on Tuesday identified the three men killed as Sakayi Robinson, 23, and brothers Rashie Jones, 29, and Akil Jones, 33.

In addition to Shoatz, four men and a woman between the ages of 26 and 30 were injured in the shooting and survived.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call or text the PPD’s tip line at 215-686-TIPS (8477).

Counseling, peer support, and victim advocacy services are available for victims, family members, and others affected by gun violence. Go to metrophiladelphia.com/gun-violence-resources for more information.