Police say the man they've charged with gunning down Philadelphia Officer Moses Walker, Jr. last Saturday has a "very violent past" and for the first time, they have identified the second suspect.
Rafael Jones, 23, was charged Friday morning with Walker's murder. He is in custody already and police say he is the gunman. The second suspect is Chancier McFarland. Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said investigators are closing in on McFarlane and urged the 19-year-old to turn himself in.
"I don't think you want our fugitive task force or our SWAT team to come and get you," Ramsey said in a Friday afternoon news conference.
Officer Walker, 40, was shot to death early Saturday morning, August 18, on his way home from work. He was walking to a bus stop at 20th and Cecil B. Moore Avenue in North Philadelphia. Walker was a 19-year veteran of the force and worked in the 22nd District.
"We are very confident Jones is the shooter and that McFarland was with him," Capt. James Clark said. "Both are very well-known to police. Jones has a lot more violence in his past, but both have spent a lot of time in the judicial system."
Capt. Clark says the break in the case came from the community -- tip calls -- after police released surveillance video showing the two suspects coming up behind Walker.
According to sources close to the investigation, Jones was in police custody earlier this month and was supposed to be fitted with an electronic monitor, but that never happened. Commissioner Ramsey said Friday he couldn't answer questions about the monitor because the focus right now, he says, needs to be on finding the second suspect.
"I don't want to get into all the side stuff. . .He's a violent thug. Thank God we have him. Thank God he won't be able to harm anyone else and this time, perhaps, the system will put him away for the rest of his miserable life."
The reward for arrests and convictions in the case is up to $118,000. Capt. Clark said the money did provide an incentive for the tips that came in, but that mostly people were just "taken by the fact that this police officer was walking down the street and he was shot and killed."
