Homicide detectives earlier this week had no motives or suspects in the shooting death of a 46-year-old man on the 1400 block of South 24th Street, officials said.
Police responding to a report of a person with a gun Saturday found Richard Johnson in the street with two gunshot wounds to the back of his head, said Capt. Thomas Lippo of the Homicide Unit.
Investigators believe the culprit may have accosted the victim as he was walking down the street around 9 p.m., Lippo said.
Johnson, believed to be homeless, was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:08 p.m., said Sgt. Steve Biello of South Detective Division.
The victim had not been carrying identification. To report information, call the Homicide Unit at 215-686-3334/3335.
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Arrest in Wal-Mart shooting
Police arrested the man wanted for shooting and seriously wounding local Wal-Mart security guard Gilbert Padilla on Nov. 24.
Jonathan Miller, 23, was apprehended without incident in the basement of a house on the 5200 block of Diamond Street, said Sgt. Steve Biello of South Detectives.
Working in conjunction with the United States Marshal Service, the Philadelphia Police Department’s Detective Bureau Warrant Unit made the arrest Jan. 14 around 7 a.m., Biello said.
Investigators later secured a search warrant and recovered from the basement a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun loaded with 16 rounds, said the sergeant.
The weapon is believed to be the same one Miller allegedly used to shoot the 42-year-old Padilla, Biello added.
Police charged Miller with attempted murder, aggravated assault, simple assault, robbery, theft and four firearms violations, including one of a former convict in possession of a firearm.
Two days after the Wal-Mart shooting, police released a photograph of Miller, whose last known address was in North Philadelphia. The suspect is accused of shooting the security guard in the back while he questioned him about an alleged shoplifting attempt at the Columbus Boulevard store.
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Senior snags suspect
A 75-year-old woman chased down a neighbor 40 years her junior who allegedly robbed her after she let him in her house to use the bathroom, police said.
Officers arrested Kevin Quirk, 35, of the 2600 block of South 18th Street, shortly after the noontime incident on Jan. 14, said Sgt. Steve Biello of South Detectives.
The victim allowed Quirk to use her upstairs bathroom, at which time he allegedly removed a gold chain and $400 in coins from the house, Biello said.
The victim gave chase as Quirk left her home and, in the ensuing struggle, he dropped the stolen items, said the sergeant.
Police in the area rounded up the suspect, whom the victim subsequently identified, Biello said.
Quirk is charged with robbery, theft, simple assault and criminal trespass. The elderly woman was unharmed in the altercation.
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Fire at food center
Fire erupted Friday afternoon at the Food Distribution Center at 3301 S. Galloway St., officials said.
Firefighters extinguished the blaze just 15 minutes after it broke out around 4 p.m., said Executive Fire Chief William Brightcliffe.
Flames originated in cardboard stored in an open trailer at the loading dock, the chief said. The fire extended to adjacent storage trailers owned by Eckert Produce. One tractor-trailer attached to a storage unit was damaged in the blaze, as was the roof over a loading dock at Bay 92 and 94, said Brightcliffe.
The fire marshal cited the cause to be careless smoking.
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Inflamed fans
Some incensed Eagles fans demonstrated their disappointment with a Bucs victory Sunday by setting a handful of fires outside Veterans Stadium. But the Philadelphia Fire Department was one step ahead of the pyromaniacs.
According to Executive Fire Chief William Brightcliffe, the fire department set up a command post, consisting of an engine company and medic units on standby, at the Vet from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Inflamed fans took to lighting garbage and a few 55-gallon drums, said Brightcliffe. Firefighters placed the flames under control within minutes, and there was no property damage, the chief added.
Police also made dozens of arrests at Sunday’s game, said Cpl. James Pauley of the police Public Affairs Unit.
As in the previous week, when police arrested 34 people at the Eagles-Falcons game, the majority of Birds fans nabbed Sunday were not city residents, Pauley said.
Disorderly conduct and public trespass accounted for almost all of the 37 arrests during Sunday’s event, said the corporal.
The accused were hauled off to Eagles court inside the stadium.
And the Birds lost anyway.
