State troopers fatally shot an 18-year-old man early Sunday morning on I-95 near Penn’s Landing while dispersing a car meetup – sometimes called a ‘sideshow’ – that had blocked the interstate.
Anthony Allegrini Jr., of Glen Mills, Delaware County, was behind the wheel of a vehicle that did not yield to law enforcement and struck two troopers, according to state police. One trooper responded by opening fire, striking Allegrini, who died at the scene, authorities said.
The troopers suffered minor injuries as a result of the incident, which occurred at around 3:30 a.m. in the southbound lanes, investigators said. State police and the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office are investigating the killing.
Authorities said troopers were dispatched to the area to respond to calls about cars blocking the highway and performing stunts for a crowd of onlookers. Responding officers were also informed of a report of shots fired on the interstate, according to state police.
Similar meetups, with cars drifting and doing doughnuts, had been spotted elsewhere in the city earlier in the night.
“This type of reckless and aggressive behavior cannot and will not be tolerated,” Mayor Jim Kenney tweeted Sunday. “Dangerous actions like these put everyone in our city at risk, especially our officers who work hard to keep our residents safe. This is unacceptable.”
Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 President John McNesby said in a statement that someone threw a brick through the window of an officer’s car Saturday night at one meetup. She was not seriously injured.
“Time and time again, our officers are understaffed to adequately address this criminal chaos,” McNesby added. “Summer is upon us and it’s up to our city administration to get a handle on this chaos and protect our residents and our hardworking police officers from this scourge.”
