Suspects in custody after Philadelphia police officer shot in Kensington

A 31-year-old Philadelphia police officer was shot and critically wounded Saturday night during a car stop in the city’s Kensington section when a gunman opened fire, police officials said.

He was one of at least eight officers who have been shot in the city in the last eight months.

Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said at a briefing that two suspects were in custody, including the person they believe was the shooter. The other suspect is believed to be a girlfriend of the suspected shooter, according to two sources.

The shooting happened around 7:30 p.m. on the 3500 block of F Street and comes just a few days after the city announced that it was nearly tripling its police presence in Kensington.

At an emotional briefing at Temple University Hospital where the victim was being treated, Bethel said that the shooter fled from the vehicle and fired three shots at the officer, who was struck in the neck. “His partner returned fire,” Bethel said.

The officer, whose name was not released, has been on the force for 6 1/2 years, said police officials, who offered few details of the incident.

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker described him as a husband and father.

Bethel said “75 to 100″ officers had gathered in a hospital auditorium and “we held hands, and we prayed for our officers.

“Today, I ask the people across the city of Philadelphia to pray for our officers.”

The victim became at least the eighth Philadelphia police officer to be shot since October, including Officer Richard Mendez, who was fatally wounded that month at Philadelphia International Airport while investigating a suspected car break-in.

Also in October, three officers were shot and wounded in the city’s Rhawnhurst section while responding to a report of a domestic shooting.

In January, another officer was shot and wounded in a Fairhill convenience store. Two other officers were wounded in incidents that month.

Staff writer Chris Palmer contributed to this article.

An earlier version of this article provided an incorrect timeline of officer shootings.