Two of the three men accused of killing Philly Police Officer Richard Mendez have been arraigned on murder charges
Alexander Batista-Polanco and Yobranny Martinez-Fernandez were denied bail and jailed after being arraigned overnight. Hendrick Peña-Fernandez is awaiting extradition.
Two of the three men arrested this week in the fatal shooting of a Philadelphia police officer and the wounding of another officer during an attempted car theft at the airport last week have been arraigned on charges including murder.
Alexander Batista-Polanco, 21, and Yobranny Martinez-Fernandez, 18, were denied bail and jailed after being arraigned overnight, according to court records. A third man, Hendrick Peña-Fernandez, was awaiting extradition to the city after he was apprehended this week in New Jersey, officials said.
The three men are accused of participating in the killing of Officer Richard Mendez and the wounding of Officer Raul Ortiz last Thursday around 11 p.m. Police have said Mendez and Ortiz were about to start their shift at Philadelphia International Airport when they heard glass breaking at the Terminal D parking lot and tried to intervene in what they believed to be a car theft.
When they responded, police said, they encountered the three defendants and a fourth man trying to break into a car, and at least one of the men began shooting at Mendez and Ortiz from behind. Police have not yet said who they believe pulled the trigger.
Mendez was struck four times, police said, while Ortiz was shot in the arm. Both were taken to area hospitals, where Mendez was pronounced dead.
One of the men trying to steal the car — Jesus Herman Madera Duran, 18, of Camden — was also shot, police said. Authorities believe he was struck by the same person who shot Mendez and Ortiz. Duran was then picked up by his coconspirators and driven to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia,where he was dropped off and later pronounced dead, police said.
Batista-Polanco, Martinez-Fernandez, and Peña-Fernandez then drove away in a stolen Dodge Durango, police said. The car was found the next day burned beside a road in South Brunswick, N.J.
A manhunt for the suspects lasted two days.
Martinez Fernandez, 18, was taken into custody early Monday morning in Cherry Hill, police said.
Batista-Polanco was arrested in New Jersey on Tuesday, then taken by police to two different jurisdictions where he was facing warrants, including Scranton, where he was charged for his role in an April burglary, according to court documents.
Peña-Fernandez, 21, of Pennsauken, was arrested early Wednesday morning in Bellmawr, Camden County, police said. It was not immediately clear when he might be extradited to Philadelphia.
It also was not immediately clear whether Batista-Polanco or Martinez-Fernandez had attorneys. Neither had a lawyer listed in court documents on Thursday.