A Southwest Philly street gang burglarized three gun stores, stealing nearly 100 guns, DA says

Investigators in Montgomery County dismantled a Philadelphia street gang that they say burglarized a series of suburban gun stores in the fall, stealing 93 firearms that they used in shootings in the city or sold to other criminals. One of the guns, prosecutors said, was used in the murder of a 16-year-old.

In a sweeping affidavit of probable cause released Wednesday, prosecutors outlined the investigation of 54th Street, a gang active in Southwest Philadelphia. The group, mostly teens, wielded guns openly on social media and in music videos of rap songs in which they bragged about killing their rivals and terrorizing their neighborhoods, according to the document.

Two adults and 11 juveniles were charged in the investigation, but only four were named in the affidavit: Angel Mason, 40, Elijah Terrell, 16, Donte Purnell, 22, and Liv Hall, 18. The nine other suspects, between the ages of 14 and 17, have been charged in juvenile court and were not publicly identified.

All have been charged with operating a corrupt organization, conspiracy, gun violations, and related offenses.

Mason’s attorney did not return a request for comment Wednesday, and Terrell’s attorney, Basil Beck, declined to comment. There was no indication Purnell and Hall had hired attorneys.

Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele, whose office is prosecuting the case, said in a statement that only 33 of the stolen guns have been recovered. Still, he praised the collaboration among local, county, and federal authorities in tracking down the 54th Street members.

» READ MORE: The ATF is offering a $15K reward for information in a Montgomery County gun store burglary

The gang committed its first smash-and-grab burglary Sept. 24, when Hall and four of the juveniles who were charged burglarized Founding Fathers Outfitters in Springfield Township, the affidavit said. The group stole 26 handguns from the store, only six of which have been recovered by police.

Detectives discovered the burglars, in part, through social media posts the teens made showing themselves handling the guns stolen from the shop, according to the affidavit.

One of those guns, authorities said, was used in the murder of Sincere Thomas, a 16-year-old who was gunned down in Southwest Philadelphia just five days after the burglary. Tahjeir Thompson, also 16, has been charged as an adult with first-degree murder in that case.

Another gun stolen from Founding Fathers was used in an unrelated shooting Sept. 26, in which Terrell tried to rob someone at gunpoint in Southwest Philadelphia, according to the affidavit. The victim drew his own gun and fired, hitting Terrell, who was taken into custody.

After that shooting, Mason, Terrell’s mother, repeatedly attempted to prevent police from serving search warrants at her home, the affidavit said. At one point, she texted her other son, Purnell, to remove stolen guns from their home before detectives arrived.

The fourth suspect, Hall, was arrested after she used one of the stolen guns from Founding Fathers to shoot at her brother during an argument outside their home, according to the affidavit.

Still, even as detectives were circling the group, they continued to plan burglaries, the affidavit said. They successfully completed one at Target World, a gun store in Chalfont, on Nov. 12, stealing 32 pistols and eight rifles.

Guns from Target World, as well as Founding Fathers, were later discovered in the Delaware bedroom of one of the juvenile suspects, who stored them alongside tools used to obliterate the guns’ serial numbers, the affidavit said.

The group attempted to burglarize another store, Continental Armory, in Hatboro, the document said, but were chased away by responding officers, who had been called by a neighbor who had heard glass breaking. Later that night, however, the group drove to Tanners Sports Center, a store in Warwick, and stole 27 guns, according to the affidavit.