‘Transaction’ gone wrong led to the shooting of four teens in Northeast Philly on Friday, police say

Police say they have identified two people who are wanted in connection with a quadruple shooting in Northeast Philadelphia last weekthat left three juveniles dead and another seriously injured, and investigators believe the violence was the result of a “transaction” gone wrong.

Staff Inspector Ernest Ransom, head of the Homicide Unit, said that around 2:15 p.m. Friday, two groups of young men arrived in separate cars on the 5900 block of Palmetto Street, and went inside a rowhouse “for some sort of transaction.”

But at some point during the meeting, shortly after 3:15 p.m., something went wrong and gunfire erupted, Ransom said.

Four people — all juveniles — were shot. Three died: Salaah Fleming, 14, of North Philadelphia; Khalif Frezghi, 17, of East Mount Airy; and Malik Ballard, 17, of Frankford.

Ransom declined to say what the transaction involved, citing the ongoing investigation.

Ransom said two cousins are wanted in connection with the shooting: Tyree Lennon, 22, and Taj Lennon, 15.

Ransom declined to say whether the Lennons lived in the home where the shooting occurred, but public records show that a person with the same last name recently lived in the home.

Two others, ages 15 and 16, have also been charged with illegal gun possession in connection with the incident. Police believe the teens dropped off a 16-year-old, who had been shot in the stomach at the Palmetto Street shooting, at Jefferson Frankford Hospital on Friday afternoon. Police recovered their vehicle, a Ford Edge, crashed nearby shortly after and arrested the teens.

The victims’ families, meanwhile, are grieving and preparing to bury their children.

“My son was a good kid,” said Khalif Frezghi’s mother, who asked not to be named for privacy reasons. “He was caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Frezghi, who enjoyed playing basketball, grew up in East Mount Airy, she said, and was preparing to graduate from Mastery Charter School Pickett Campus next month.

His family will gather Tuesday for his funeral, his mother said — the day he would have turned 18.

“I’m burying my son on his birthday,” she said.

While the family is grappling with loss, violence struck close to home over the weekend.

A shooting erupted near their block Sunday night as loved ones were gathering for a vigil to honor Frezghi, police said. Nearly 80 shots were fired, police said, and two young men were injured: an 18-year-old shot in the thigh, and a 21-year-old shot in the calf.

Frezghi’s mother said the shooting was not related to the vigil. It erupted on the basketball courts of Pleasant Playground at the end of the block, she said, but the proximity of the gunfire caused vigil attendees to panic and flee.

Police are investigating whether the two events are linked, said Ransom.

In an Instagram post, the nonprofit We Heard You, which mentors young men, said Frezghi had worked with their organization.

“We’ve watched him and his friends grow up. We’ve loved on him. We’ve mentored him. We’re hurt we couldn’t have done more to guide him,” the organization wrote.

Salaah Fleming was an eighth grader at Mathematics, Civics and Sciences Charter School of Philadelphia Inc. Fleming had just started at the school in September and was praised by his teachers as being “very mannerable, very quiet and hardworking,” said Veronica J. Joyner, the school’s founder and chief administrative officer for nearly 25 years.

A Janazah and burial for Fleming is planned for Tuesday, according to a flier posted online.

Malik Ballard’s family could not be reached Monday.

Shootings involving children have been steadily rising in Philadelphia. More than 60 children have been shot this year, and 11 have died.

Among them were: Semaj Richardson, 16; Shaheed Saoud, 16; Isaiah Odom, 17; Anthony Pinckney, 14; Neko Rivera, 15; Devin Weedon, 15; Nasir Cousins, 16; and Nafis Betrand-Hill, 16.