Security guard killed in stabbing at Macy’s in Center City; suspect in custody

>> Update: The security guard who was killed Monday has been identified

Two security guards at Macy’s in Center City were stabbed, one fatally, inside the iconic department store Monday morning, police said.

Shortly before 11 a.m., a 30-year-old man — identified by law enforcement sources as Tyrone Tunnell — attempted to steal some hats from the store at 13th and Market Streets. When security guards confronted Tunnell and retrieved the stolen items, he initially left without incident, said Interim Police Commissioner John Stanford.

But about 10 minutes later, Tunnell returned, then approached one of the guards and started stabbing him, Stanford said. When a second security guard attempted to intervene, Stanford said, Tunnell slashed and stabbed that guard as well. One of the men, a 30-year-old who had been stabbed in the neck, died from his injuries at Jefferson Hospital a short time later, Stanford said. The second guard, a 23-year-old who was stabbed in the face and forearm, was in stable condition.

The violence, committed in broad daylight just one block from City Hall and inside one of the city’s most historic retail locations, shocked many and came at the start of the store’s busy holiday season, when locals and tourists alike flock there for its popular Christmas light show.

“These security guards were just doing their jobs. They’re here to make sure that people can come to this location and shop in a safe manner,” Stanford said outside the store. “For something like this to happen on a Monday morning during the holiday season … It’s just another indication that every bit of crime is important in the city.”

Tunnell, the suspect, was in custody within an hour. After the stabbing, he fled to SEPTA’s 13th Street Station and boarded an eastbound Market-Frankford Line train. He was apprehended a short time later at SEPTA’s Somerset Station, Stanford said.

He’s expected to be charged with murder and related crimes.

Stanford declined to identify the guards, but said one has worked at the store for a few years while the other has worked there only a few months. Neither was armed, he said.

“It’s just a tragic situation,” he said.

Macy’s said in a statement Monday the store would remain closed until further notice.

“We are heartbroken about the incident that took place today at Macy’s Center City,” a spokesperson said in an email. “The store will temporarily remain closed as we work with law enforcement on this investigation. ... Ensuring the safety and well-being of our customers and colleagues is always our top priority.”

Macy’s, in the historic Wanamaker building, is one of the most architecturally significant retail spaces in the country, and its striking interior, including the grand Wanamaker Organ, contributed to its designation as a National Historical Landmark. Its light show is one of the city’s most well-attended Christmas attractions.

» READ MORE: Stores battle shoplifting amid thefts by organized rings

But the store, located on a stretch of East Market Street that often sees higher rates of homelessness and foot traffic, has recently faced what Stanford said was some of the highest rates of retail theft in the city. So far this year, he said, police have received 250 reports of retail theft at the location.

Retail theft has been a significant issue in Philadelphia and nationally.

Locally, reports of property crime have increased in recent years after dropping to historic lows before the pandemic. Philadelphia police are arresting only a fraction of the number of people accused of retail theft. So far this year, 409 people have been arrested for retail theft, compared to 1,724 people arrested in 2013, according to data from the District Attorney’s Office.

Of those whose cases were resolved this year, more than 60% have had their cases dismissed or withdrawn by prosecutors, data shows. About a third pleaded guilty to the crime, while 20 people entered diversion programs.

District Attorney Larry Krasner’s spokesperson Jane Roh said the office brings charges “in nearly all cases where probable cause is established,” and that many cases withdrawn are due to store employees failing to appear as witnesses because they didn’t get time off work.

Krasner has told his staff to seek less jail time for certain offenses, including shoplifting. It’s a stance that some business owners say has contributed to the uptick in theft and left some struggling financially, while criminal justice reformists, including Krasner, have said it would reduce rates of incarceration, save taxpayers money, and allow police to focus on investigating more serious crimes.

Roh said the office also increasingly seeks rehabilitative programming, like addiction or behavioral health treatment. She said that the man in custody “has a history of arrests and prosecutions throughout the region.” This indicates, she said, “that his interactions with the criminal legal system failed to produce a result that improved public safety.”

Stanford said Monday that law enforcement must take the crime seriously.

“It’s not any less important as far as things to address for the safety of the city,” he said. “As you can see, what started out as a retail theft ended in a homicide here.”

Outside Macy’s on Monday afternoon, a trail of bloody footprints ran from the door to the sidewalk, and a pool of blood had begun to dry on the ground beneath the department store’s holiday window displays.

Rita Pannunzio, 63, of Old City, had come to the store to admire its window displays, as she does every year. But on Monday, she was turned away as crime scene investigators collected evidence.

”Everybody is just down and this just made it sad,” she said.

Staff writer Rodrigo Torrejón contributed to this article.