Police arrest man accused of killing 60-year-old man during carjacking

Police on Sunday announced the arrest of a man accused of fatally shooting a 60-year-old in a carjacking while the victim was visiting his mother in Northeast Philadelphia.

In an emailed statement, Philadelphia police said they had a man in custody in the slaying of George Briscella on Feb. 6. Briscella was headed to his mother’s home on Afton Street in the Rhawnhurst section to use her printer just past 8 p.m. that day and was shot in the stomach in the driveway, according to Homicide Capt. Jason Smith.

When officers got there, they found Briscella suffering from a gunshot wound to the stomach and back, police said. He was taken to a nearby hospital and was pronounced dead just after 9 p.m.

Police did not immediately identify the suspect or say when he was arrested.

Surveillance footage shows Briscella pulling into the driveway and, about a minute later, three other men approaching on foot, police said. Three gunshots are heard on the footage. Shortly after, the car Briscella was driving — a 2022 Toyota RAV-4 — is seen speeding away from the scene.

Briscella was shot once with an assault-style rifle, police previously said.

Police previously described the suspected carjacking as a “crime of opportunity,” another in a recent spate of carjackings across Philadelphia. Carjackings in the city this year are happening at a record pace, according to police statistics.

There had been more than 140 reported as of Feb. 7, seven times the number reported about the same time in 2020.