Homicide detectives are attempting to identify four young men in connection with the fatal shooting of a teenager aboard a SEPTA bus Saturday afternoon in West Philadelphia.
Authorities released surveillance images and footage Monday showing the suspects in the killing, which occurred just after 1 p.m. at 40th Street and Girard Avenue in the Parkside neighborhood.
Zahkir Whitfield, 15, who lived in Upper Darby, died after one of the males shot him in the chest following an altercation on the bus, according to authorities. No arrests had been made when Metro went to print late Tuesday afternoon, according to a PPD spokesperson.
The video distributed by police seems to depict three of the suspects buying items inside a corner store. Investigators said the trio boarded the bus, which was running along the path of SEPTA’s G trolley, formerly known as Route 15, at Girard and Ridge avenues in North Philadelphia.
Detectives said the fourth suspect stepped onto the bus at a later stop, as it headed west on Girard. The footage shows the suspects entering the vehicle before cutting to a clip of one of the men holding out a gun and appearing to fire through the bus’s back door from the sidewalk.
All four men fled west on Girard toward 41st Street, according to police.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to contact the PPD’s Homicide Unit at 215-686-3334/3335; call or text 215-686-TIPS (8477); or submit a tip online at www.phillypolice.com/forms/submit-a-tip.
Whitfield was a sophomore at Upper Darby High School, and the township’s mayor, Ed Brown, said his death is “part of an all-too-common pattern of violence affecting our youth.”
“As a community, we must come together to grieve, to support one another, and to reaffirm our commitment to creating safer spaces and educating our youth and people of all ages that violence is not the answer,” Brown continued, in a statement issued Monday.
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.
