Philly police seek gunmen who shot a 2 year old and two teens in North Philadelphia

Philadelphia Police are searching for the gunmen who shot three children — including a two-year-old boy who just celebrated his birthday — in North Philadelphia on Thursday night.

The shooting happened around 8:40 p.m., in the area of North 11th and Master Streets, police said. More than 30 spent shell casings from two different caliber guns were later found at the scene.

The toddler and a 15-year-old girl were standing outside their home on the 1300 block of North 11th Street when they were struck by bullets, police said. Both children were shot in the legs and were taken to Temple University Hospital, where they were in stable condition.

A 17-year-old boy later arrived at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital with a gunshot wound to his ankle, police said. The teen told police he had been shot at North 11th and Master Streets, steps away from where the other two victims were shot.

The two teen victims were released from the hospitals early Friday morning, said Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore.

Surveillance footage shows a person getting out of a white SUV on the 1400 block of 11th and opening fire before fleeing, police said. Additional footage released by the police shows a person in the backseat on the driver side of the SUV, which is seen idling in front of St. Malachy Church on North 11 Street, stick his head out and fire a gun toward Master Street as the other gunman hops back in. The driver of the SUV peels away seconds later.

The two shooters were masked and wearing black, the footage shows. At least three people were in the SUV, said Vanore.

No arrests had been made, no weapon was recovered, and police did not release a motive for the crime. Vanore said it was clear that the children were “innocent victims.”

On Friday morning, the block of two-story town houses where the gunfire erupted was mostly quiet, pierced only by the sound of lawn mowers as a handful of Philadelphia Housing Authority employees cut the grass.

Nobody answered the door at the apartment where the 2-year-old and the 15-year-old lived. Several children’s bicycles and soccer balls dotted the backyard.

Jay Smith, a neighbor whose children often played with the younger victims, stopped at the house before heading to the hospital to visit them . He said he was worried about them because when the gunfire broke out the night before, he heard more than 20 shots.

Another neighbor, who asked not to be identified for safety reasons, said she saw the shooting from her window.

A group of children were playing on the steps of the house when a white Jeep SUV pulled up and a man jumped out and started shooting, then jumped back in the SUV and drove off, she said. The children ran into the house, crying and saying the toddler had been shot, she said.

The gunfire marked a violent end to what had been a celebratory weekend for the family. The toddler had just turned 2, neighbors said, and the family held a birthday party for him last Saturday, complete with a kiddie pool and a bounce house that they set up in the park near their house.

“I feel really sad for the family,” one neighbor said. “They were just minding their own business.”