For the second time in as many weeks, a purse snatching turned into a shooting in the city.
An unidentified man and his girlfriend came out of a home near 26th Street and Lehigh Avenue in North Philadelphia just before midnight when a man ran up and grabbed the 23-year-old woman’s purse.
Police say the suspect took about $300 out of the purse before tossing it away as he ran down the street.
“Immediately when they came down the steps a male -- thin built with a tattoo on his face -- snatched the girlfriend’s purse and the doer began running east on Lehigh,” said Philadelphia Police Capt. George Fuchs. “He started going through the purse and he actually took the money and dropped the purse.
The woman’s 24-year-old boyfriend gave chase and that’s when police say a second suspect appeared and fired a revolver -- striking the man once in the chest.
Officers arrived at the scene and rushed the victim to Temple University Hospital. He is currently in critical condition.
“I think they were both surprised that this guy came out of nowhere and started running,” said Fuchs.
About 30 minutes later, police stopped three men who were walking along 25th Street between Harold and Huntingdon Streets. According to police, two of the three men matched the description of the suspects.
Police arrested Rasheed Hall, 26, and Clinton Brown, 20, both of Philadelphia. According to investigators, Hall was the man who shot the victim while Brown was the one who committed the initial robbery. Both men are charged with aggravated assault, robbery, theft and other related offenses.
Police recovered the purse minus $300.
Last week, a young architect walking down the street with her mother was shot and killed during a purse snatching in Northern Liberties. Two suspects in that case remain on the loose.
