Police investigating trio of homicides

Gun violence claimed the lives of three people in Philadelphia over the past several days, and three men were injured in daytime shootings Monday.

Early Monday morning, just after midnight, a 27-year-old man was shot in the head in a back alley on the 2300 block of N. Cleveland Street in North Philly, police said. Officers rushed him to Temple University Hospital, where he died minutes later.

Officers responded just after 1 a.m. Friday to the 2600 block of N. Sartain Street in North Philly and found a 43-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the left side of his head inside a white minivan. He died a few hours later at Temple Hospital.

In Point Breeze, a man was gunned down Thursday night just outside his house on the 1600 block of Annin Street, according to authorities. He was later identified by police as 43-year-old Christopher Thomas.

Homicide detectives continue to investigate all three killings, and no arrests have been made as of Monday afternoon.

Philadelphia’s homicide rate is up nearly 20 percent compared to last year, and 127 people have been killed in 2020, according to police data.

A 27-year-old man is in the hospital fighting for his life after he was shot in broad daylight Monday on the 500 block of S. 56th Street in West Philly, police said.

Officers responded to the scene at around 11:30 a.m., and the victim was transported to Penn Presbyterian Hospital, where he was placed in critical condition.

Later in the day, at 2:30 p.m., a 27-year-old man was shot once in the upper back on the 5800 block of N. 20th Street in East Germantown. He was taken to Einstein Medical Center in stable condition, police said.

Then, a 58-year-old man walked into Episcopal Hospital in Kensington at around 3:45 p.m. with a gunshot wound to his right arm. He’s listed in stable condition, and police were still working late Monday afternoon to determine the scene of the shooting.

No one has been apprehended in any of the shootings, authorities said.

Meanwhile, in the Rhawnhurst section of Northeast Philly, two people ended up in the hospital Sunday after a disturbance turned violent.

Officers arrived on the 1700 block of Vista Street at around 10:30 p.m. and found a 32-year-old man who had been shot in the left ankle and two people who had been assaulted with baseball bats.

The man, who is in stable condition, knew the shooter, authorities said. A 60-year-old man who had been hit by a bat was treated at the scene, and a 30-year-old woman who had also been beaten was taken to Jefferson Torresdale Hospital in stable condition, police said.

Detectives continue to investigate the incident.

Investigators release video of shooting suspects

Police are looking for a car connected to a shooting incident that occurred Friday in West Oak Lane.

The driver of a black Pontiac Aztec circled the 6400 block of Norwood Street when, at around 4:15 p.m., those inside the car fired at least 15 shots at an unknown man, who began running for his life.

Authorities said the car fled southbound from Chelten Avenue. Several nearby vehicles and a business were damaged by the gunfire.

Police also released video of a separate incident, a shooting that occurred just after 1 p.m. April 27 on the 6400 block of Musgrave Street in East Mount Airy.

Two men are shown chasing the victim away from an apartment building, and, when he returns, they shoot him in the right forearm and thigh.

Police described the shooter as a 20-year-old black man with a thin build, short dreadlocks, gray hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans. His accomplice is also a 20-year-old black man with a thin build who was wearing a navy hoodie, black pants with white patches and white sneakers, police said.

To view the videos, go to philly.metro.us.

Authorities are asking anyone with information about either shooting to contact Northwest Detectives at 215-686-3353/3354.