Search continues for gunmen after Northeast Philadelphia mass shooting

Detectives continue to investigate the mass shooting last week that left eight Northeast High School students hospitalized. 

No arrests had been made in the case when Metro went to print Sunday, according to police.

Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore said Thursday that investigators are “moving towards knowing more” about what led to to the gunfire. Police, he told reporters, are still unsure whether the incident is connected to a remarkably similar shooting that occurred after school dismissal time March 4 targeting Imhotep Institute Charter School students.

Officers from the department’s highway patrol unit recovered a 2018 Hyundai Sonata unoccupied at around 10:30 p.m. March 6 on the 400 block of W. Fern Street in Olney, police said. They believe the three gunmen, along with a driver, used the vehicle during the shooting at the “Five Points” intersection of Cottman, Rising Sun and Oxford avenues in Burholme.

Vanore said the Hyundai had been reported stolen Saturday, March 2, in the Far Northeast-based 7th Police District. While responding to that incident, officers found a stolen Kia parked where the Hyundai had been, authorities added. Investigators believe the thieves dumped the Kia and took off in the Hyundai, Vanore told reporters at a Thursday afternoon news conference. Both vehicles are being held as evidence.

The Hyundai, authorities allege, was parked near a Dunkin’ Donuts at Five Points at around 3 p.m. March 6 when the suspects got out and unloaded 34 shots at a crowd of students waiting to get on a SEPTA bus.

The victims were seven boys and one girl ranging in age from 15 to 17, according to the PPD. One of them – a 16-year-old boy – was in critical condition at Jefferson Torresdale Hospital after he was shot nine times, Vanore said.

“I’m told that the doctors are optimistic,” he said Thursday. “We have to get through today. They’re looking to hopefully upgrade him at some point.”

Police released surveillance video showing the shooters. Numerous tips came in after the footage was publicized Wednesday night, according to Vanore. Anyone with information is asked to contact 911 or call or text 215-686-TIPS.

Two days earlier, at around 3:45 p.m., authorities said two gunmen opened fire on a group of 15 to 20 students boarding a SEPTA Route 6 bus at Ogontz and Godfrey avenues, near Imhotep. Dayemen Taylor, 17, was killed and four other people were wounded.

Police are searching for answers after latest Northeast mass shooting

“If they are connected, and I don’t know if they are, we want to end this dispute very quickly,” Vanore said.

Vanore said the PPD would be boosting its patrols near schools and along SEPTA bus corridors.

Northeast High, which has more students enrolled than other public school in Philadelphia, operated on a virtual schedule Thursday and Friday of last week.

To allow for small group and individualized support, the school plans to bring juniors and seniors back for in-person classes Monday, Northeast Principal Omar Crowder said in a message to parents over the weekend. On Tuesday, 9th and 10th graders will return, with upperclassmen switching to remote instruction.

There will be an increased law enforcement presence around the school, Crowder said, with additional officers from the PPD and representatives from the School District of Philadelphia’s Office of School Safety.

Crisis response counselors will be available for students in the building, officials said. Mental health services for students and staff are also available online through Kooth and Lyra Health, according to the School District of Philadelphia.

“This tragedy has deeply impacted our community,” Crowder said, in the letter. “We are committed to supporting you and your children during this difficult time. Remember, you are not alone.”

Two SEPTA buses were struck by gunfire during the Burholme shooting, though no riders were injured. Fifteen people have been shot – three fatally – on or near SEPTA buses in the past week. Transit Police Chief Charles Lawson has vowed to step up enforcement, in collaboration with the PPD.