A 26-year-old man is set to face a weapons charge after a police officer was injured by gunfire Monday night in North Philadelphia, according to law enforcement officials.
Police said a Highway Patrol officer was frisking Rashid Walker during a traffic stop when a gun discharged, sending a bullet into the officer’s leg. He rushed to Temple University Hospital, where he was being treated for nonlife-threatening injuries, authorities added.
The officer and his partner stopped the vehicle just before 7:45 p.m. in the area of 17th and Cumberland streets, according to the PPD. Investigators have not said why police pulled over the car.
Walker was a passenger in the vehicle, and he and the driver exited the car during the stop, law enforcement said. The injured officer, while checking Walker for weapons, felt a handgun in his jacket pocket; at that point, the firearm went off, striking the patrolman in the upper right leg, police said. Detectives are still looking into why the gun fired, the PPD added.
Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel told reporters at the scene that the officer is a 53-year-old father of three and a 20-year veteran of the department. Officials have not released his name.
Walker is being charged with violations of the Uniform Firearms Act, according to the PPD.
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