Two men convicted in West Philly triple killing at grocery store

More than five years after Ibrahim Muhammad and NalikScott walked into a West Philadelphia groceryand fatally shot the store owner, his wife and her sister, a jury convicted both men of murder.

On Wednesday, after an hour-and-a-half of deliberation, a juryfound the two men guilty of all charges, including three counts of first-degree murder. Muhammad and Scott, both 35, now face the death penalty, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported, with the sentencing phase beginning today.

On Sept. 6, 2011, the pair had intended to rob the store, according to Muhammad. But instead it turned deadly, and the pair killed Porfirio Nunez, the owner of Lorena’s Grocery on 50th and Parrish streets, his wife Juana and sister-in-law Lina Sanchez. The couple had two children.

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In a 2012 confession, Muhammadsaid the killing was“just supposed to be a robbery” that ended up going awry. He and Scott were expecting a big haul, too, Muhammad told Philadelphia police detective Thomas Gaul, according to reports.

On the night of the killing, at about 8 p.m., the pair entered the grocery store. Scott confronted the couple’s daughters, Jessica and Laura, who were at the cash register. Muhammed later said that he “held the women hostage to make sure they didn’t have guns or knives.”

Porfirio Nunez approached to see what was going on, and Muhammad opened fire, killing the three people. Jessica Nunez, then 19, said she handed over cash from the register immediately after the shooting, while pleading for her life.

Muhammad and Scott fled, and were later arrested by police on an unrelated marijuana possession charge.