Off-duty car stop leads to high-speed crash and investigation of a Philly police commander
Inspector George Kappe is such a stickler for the rules that some cops call him "Mr. Rogers." The crash in Northeast Philly has generated a lot of buzz within the Police Department's rank-and-file.
A commander in the Philadelphia Police Department’s Internal Affairs Bureau is himself facing an internal investigation for his role in an off-duty vehicle stop this week in Northeast Philadelphia that ended with the suspects’ car speeding away and flipping over. The driver and passenger were hospitalized.
Law enforcement sources said Inspector George Kappe — while driving an unmarked vehicle — pulled up behind a parked Dodge Charger shortly after 4 p.m. Tuesday. He’d just left work. A short time earlier, he had noticed the car doing doughnuts in a parking lot near the Internal Affairs building on Dungan Road.
When Kappe activated his emergency lights and relayed the information over police radio, the Charger pulled away, according to the sources, who spoke anonymously in order to comment freely on the matter. Kappe said he followed the car to try to get its license plate number, but turned his lights off after the vehicle reached a high speed, sources said.
The Dodge crashed and overturned on the 600 block of Tyson Avenue, sending the two men to the hospital.
The Police Department has strict rules for initiating a vehicular pursuit, including requiring probable cause that the suspect has committed or attempted a felony involving force, or possesses a deadly weapon.
Sgt. Eric Gripp, a police spokesperson, would not confirm Kappe’s involvement, but said on Thursday that an Internal Affairs commander was under investigation by Investigative Support Services, which handles probes involving people within Internal Affairs.
The investigation will likely focus on whether any police department directives were violated.
Gripp said the commander had not been placed on restricted duty, but he is “currently not overseeing any Internal Affairs investigations.”
The Special Investigations Unit in the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office is also investigating the matter. A spokeswoman for the DA’s office declined to provide additional details.
Kappe, a former 26th District captain and 37-year veteran of the department, declined to comment.
The matter has generated considerable buzz within the Police Department, largely due to Kappe’s reputation as a stickler for rules and regulations. Some referred to him over the years as “Mr. Rogers.”
The car that Kappe pursued was later determined to have been stolen in New York. In it were 27-year-old twin brothers. After the car flipped, one man was trapped inside, while the other tried to flee, but was apprehended nearby.
They had not been charged as of Thursday, but charges are expected, law enforcement sources said.
The extent of their injuries was not known Thursday. A relative said the twins’ parents were in Haiti.
Inquirer staff writer Barbara Laker contributed to this article.