The 45-year-old man accused of shooting a Philly cop will face attempted murder and other charges, police say

Authorities on Thursday identified the Philadelphia police officer who was shot Wednesday during a vehicle stop in West Philadelphia, and announced the arrest of two men they said were involved in the incident.

Giovanni Maysonet, 32, a five-year veteran of the department, was shot Wednesday afternoon on the 200 block of North 60th Street, police said. A few hours later, just before 8:30 p.m., police arrested Eric Haynes, 45, of Darby, and he was to be charged Thursday with multiple crimes, including attempted murder and assault of a law enforcement officer, officials said.

Haynes fired his gun through the pocket of his hooded sweatshirt and shot the officer twice, officials said — once in the chest on his bulletproof vest and also in his abdomen. Maysonet was hospitalized in stable condition after undergoing surgery for his wounds, Deputy Commissioner Frank Vanore said Thursday morning.

District Attorney Larry Krasner said Thursday that Ernest Reed, 42, would also be charged with crimes including obstruction of justice and tampering with evidence for driving a Lexus from the scene after the incident.

Krasner called the crime “horrific,” and Assistant District Attorney Joanne Pescatore choked up when describing the actions of Maysonet and his partner, Officer Mychal Couch.

The incident began around 3:40 p.m. Wednesday, when Maysonet and Couch — both in uniform and assigned to the 19th District — conducted a vehicle stop on a silver Lexus on 60th Street, police said.

Vanore said he didn’t know the reason for the initial investigation, and authorities did not elaborate on the circumstances.

Three people were in the Lexus when the two officers approached the car, officials said — Maysonet at the passenger side door and Couch on the driver’s side.

The encounter devolved in seconds, prosecutors said.

Haynes — who was a passenger in the car — stepped out and got into a physical struggle with Maysonet, who grabbed him by the midsection before Haynes shot at him at least twice. Pescatore said Haynes fired the gun while it was still in the pocket of his sweatshirt.

Maysonet fell backward against the rear of the Lexus, then to the ground. The shot to his vest area did not go through, police said while the bullet to his abdomen exited through his back.

Couch fired seven shots in return, authorities said, but did not hit Haynes or the other two people in the car — Reed and a woman.

Couch, 28, who has been with the department for four years, then drove his wounded partner to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. Both officers were wearing body-worn cameras that captured footage of the shooting, officials said.

Pescatore said she was “amazed” at the way the officers reacted. They gave information over police radio about suspects while driving to the hospital, she said, and Maysonet called his family and talked about his children. “It was quite emotional,” she said, fighting off tears.

Meanwhile, other officers who responded to the area found the Lexus on Edgewood Street near 60th, along with Reed and the woman who had been inside during the incident, officials said.

Police apprehended and interviewed them, and Krasner said the charges against Reed were for driving the Lexus — a significant piece of evidence — from the crime scene. The woman in the car would not be charged, he said.

The interviews led police to Haynes, whom officers found later Wednesday night near a house on the 6800 block of Guyer Avenue. SWAT officers found Haynes in the driver’s seat of a car parked in the rear alley behind the house, police said.

Vanore said officers who took Haynes into custody found weapons at the house, including a loaded 9mm handgun, which Pescatore said was the gun used to shoot Maysonet.

Haynes had not been arraigned as of Thursday afternoon, according to court records. He has convictions for resisting arrest, drug offenses, and weapons violations in cases in Delaware County that date back to 1997, court records show. His most recent conviction was in 2019, when he pleaded guilty to drug charges and resisting arrest and was sentenced to 11½ to 23 months in jail plus two years of probation, the records show.

Reed, meanwhile — who has several aliases — was on parole for a 2018 conviction out of Delaware County for fleeing to avoid apprehension, prosecutors said.

Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said Wednesday night that Maysonet was expected to physically recover, but that the physical and mental fallout from such incidents is often extensive for the person who was shot, his loved ones, and colleagues.

“There’s absolutely relief that we’re not reporting on an officer death,” she said, “but it doesn’t take away the anger I feel, the frustration that we all feel.”