What to Know
- People -- including a man and woman pushing a child in a stroller -- could be seen on video ducking for cover as at least three gunmen hopped out of an SUV and opened fire on a teenager in Philadelphia's Graduate Hospital neighborhood Wednesday night.
- Sadiq Dove, 18, died after being shot multiple times along South 17th Street Wednesday night.
- “I think in this particular instance, based on what we’re seeing on video, it does appear that this individual was being targeted," Philadelphia Police Inspector D F Pace said.
Video shows the moment a woman and a man pushing a child in a stroller fled for their lives as a teenager was shot and killed by three gunmen who ambushed him in South Philadelphia’s Graduate Hospital neighborhood Wednesday night.
Teen gunned down after leaving YMCA
The 18-year-old -- later identified as Sadiq Dove of the nearby Grays Ferry neighborhood -- was walking on the sidewalk with three of four other people along the 900 block of South 17th Street around 7:10 p.m., police said. Shortly before the ambush, Dove left the nearby Christian Street YMCA after playing basketball there.
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"It does appear that one of those people in that group was some sort of counselor," Philadelphia Police Inspector D F Pace said. "It very well may be the individual was in some sort of a youth group possibly when this shooting occurred."
As the group continued walking, a gray Dodge Durango stopped in front of them, investigators said. Three armed men then jumped out of the vehicle -- which has tinted windows and black rims -- and opened fire, shooting Dove multiple times.
"They specifically appear to target that individual," Philadelphia Police Deputy Commissioner Frank Vanore said during an impromptu Thursday afternoon news conference.
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Pace said police obtained surveillance video of the shooting. More than 20 shots were fired from at least three weapons, investigators said.
"It appears even after he was down that they continued firing," Pace said Wednesday night. "And then they all got back into the vehicle and fled away from the scene."
Responding officers took Dove to the hospital where he was pronounced dead at 7:44 p.m.
Pace initially told NBC10 the three gunmen were all dressed in dark clothing and one of them appeared to be wearing protective yellow "kitchen" gloves. Pace also said they were unable to tell from surveillance video whether or not the gunmen were wearing masks.
No weapons have been recovered. Based on the surveillance video and evidence, police believe two of the suspects were armed with handguns while a third suspect was armed with what appeared to be a high-powered rifle.
On Thursday morning, police revealed new details about the suspects, saying each appeared to be between 18 to 25 years old:
- Shooter No. 1 - "thin build, black hooded sweatshirt, black pants wearing a mask and gloves - armed with a handgun."
- Shooter No. 2 - "thin build, dark hooded sweatshirt, dark pants wearing a mask and gloves- armed with a rifle."
- Shooter No. 3 - "thin build, hooded sweatshirt, dark pants wearing a mask and gloves- armed with a handgun."
- A fourth suspect -- who police didn't have a description of -- drove the getaway vehicle.
Police said they were combing over social media posts and evidence from the scene as they searched for a specific motive for the shooting.
Vanore said he didn't think the shooting had anything to do with something that happened inside the YMCA.
Shooting rattles people walking nearby
"It's certainly a horrific scene to see," Vanore said about the shooting.
NBC10 obtained video showing a woman and a man who was pushing a child in a stroller in the area when the shots were fired. They then ran down the sidewalk as the man continued to push the child in the stroller to safety. No other injuries were reported in connection to the shooting.
Oliver Bastian, a Graduate Hospital resident, told NBC10 the neighborhood is generally safe.
"When I moved into this part of the city, I picked around here because it's one of the safer parts of Philadelphia," Bastian said. "I've never seen anything like this happen before. It's pretty sad."
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Pace told NBC10 however the shooting likely had more to do with the victim -- who is known to police -- than the area in which he was killed.
“I think in this particular instance, based on what we’re seeing on video, it does appear that this individual was being targeted," Pace said. "So if he was here, if he was somewhere else, I don’t think it has as much to do with the neighborhood as it does with the fact that this particular person who possibly the shooters were looking for happened to be here and this was an opportunity. So I wouldn’t put too much emphasis on the actual location because it does appear that this person was targeted. It wasn’t just a random shooting for example.”
The toll of gun violence in Philadelphia
Pace also said another shooting occurred shortly after about 2 miles away on the 1700 block of Napa Street in which a home was struck by about six bullets. No one was hurt during that incident and police are investigating if it was related to the deadly shooting.
As is the case with all homicides in the city, a 20,000 reward is being offered for information leading to each of Dove's killers' arrests and conviction. People with information are urged to contact police.
Entering Thursday, there were 242 homicides in Philadelphia, according to data gathered by Philadelphia Police. That's down 22% from the same time last year, but still on pace to be one of the deadliest years since data began being tabulated in 2007.
There are additional resources for people or communities that have endured gun violence in Philadelphia. Further information can be found here.
