What to Know
- Aruna Mittal was gunned down inside her Ogontz neighborhood checking cashing business on Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2021.
- On Thursday, Philadelphia police announced an arrest in the killing.
- Robert Jiles, 64, is charged with criminal homicide, robbery and other related offenses.
An arrest has been made in the killing of a Philadelphia check cashing business owner gunned down inside her Ogontz neighborhood store earlier this week.
Robert Jiles, 64, is charged with criminal homicide, robbery, violation uniform firearm act-former convict, violation uniform firearm act-no license, violation uniform firearm act-on streets, theft-unlawful taking, theft-receiving stolen property and possessing instruments of crime.
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Jiles is accused of shooting and killing Aruna Mittal during a robbery inside her business on Tuesday.
Mittal initially left her store, "Any Checks Cashed," along the 5800 block of Old York Road in the Ogontz neighborhood on Tuesday.
When the 67-year-old returned to the business around 1:10 p.m., she was followed inside by Jiles, police said.
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Jiles and Mittal struggled over the gun, according to investigators. Jiles then fired, shooting Mittal once in the chest and leaving her in the backroom, Philadelphia police said.
Jiles then fled the scene in an unknown vehicle with an undisclosed amount of money, police said.
Mittal was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later.
Sources earlier told NBC10 police were able to track Jiles going into a nearby train station through surveillance video. It is unclear at this point if that is how police tracked him down.
Unkur Mittal, Aruna's oldest son, told NBC10 his parents, originally from New Delhi, India, came to the United States years ago and built a successful life together.
He said his mother was the center of their large family.
"She has seven grandchildren," Unkur Mittal said. "She was a wonderful mother who worked day and night. Never argues."
Unkur Mittal said his brother was flying in from Europe while other family members were trying to obtain an emergency visa and fly to Philadelphia from India to attend the funeral, which will likely take place on Sunday.
"I'm upset that it happened because a tragic loss is a tragic loss and I'm frustrated that in this city, it's another homicide and nothing has been done and nothing will be done," he said.
As of the end of Wednesday, there were 488 homicides in Philadelphia, up 12% from the same time last year, which was ultimately one of the deadliest on record. At least 61 of those homicide victims were women.
There are additional resources for people or communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Further information can be found here.
