A hatchet attack and a shooting at SEPTA stations this weekend continued a spate of high-profile violence

Two attacks over the weekend at SEPTA stations in Philadelphia continued a recent spate of high-profile violent crimes that have plagued the transit system.

A 20-year-old was shot on a Broad Street Line northbound subway train that had just left the Hunting Park Station just before 9 p.m. Saturday.

Then, less than five hours later, a hatchet-wielding assailant attacked another rider on the subway concourse near the SEPTA station at 8th and Market Streets, police said.

That incident occurred just before 1:30 a.m. Sunday morning. The victim told officers his attacker had struck him six times with the hatchet and kicked him four times in the face. He suffered cuts to the back of his head and bruising to his face, according to police reports on the attack.

While police were taking the hatchet victim’s statement, officers spotted a man matching the description of the attacker on the street nearby and took him into custody.

Police identified the suspect Sunday evening as Kenneth Rogers, 28, and said he had an active warrant for his arrest from the Philadelphia Police Department for another attempted murder.

Rogers did not have a hatchet on him at the time of his arrest and investigators did not recover one at the scene, police said.

Meanwhile, officers have also arrested one suspect in connection with the shooting Saturday evening, though they did not publicly name him.

Investigators believe that attack followed a confrontation between a group of people and the victim and continue to review security footage to identify possible other suspects, Busch said.

The shooting victim, who police did not name Sunday, was listed in stable condition at Temple University Hospital with gunshot wounds to the left shoulder and left flank. His injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.

Still, the incidents came as SEPTA has struggled in recent months to improve security and reverse perceptions that the transit system has grown less safe after a series of similar high-profile attacks.

Last year, six people were killed on SEPTA, according to agency data. The transit system reported 108 aggravated assaults, down from 111 the year before.

Already this year, police arrested 33-year-old Jason Howard in January, after he stabbed another man in the back during a confrontation on the platform of the Market-Frankford Line’s 15th Street Station.

That incident came a week after teen suspects allegedly opened fire into a crowd, hitting 16-year-old Tyshaun Welles in the head. Welles later died, and two teenagers were charged with his murder.

The spate of violence has drawn increased scrutiny from lawmakers in Philadelphia and Harrisburg.

Last year, Gov. Josh Shapiro signed a provision into law that would give both state and local law enforcement jurisdiction to investigate and prosecute crime on the SEPTA system — a move Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner has opposed.

He’s sued to block the measure, known as Act 40, arguing that it is unconstitutional. While state appellate courts have not yet ruled, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office last month missed a key deadline to appoint a special prosecutor to handle SEPTA cases, raising questions about its future.

SEPTA sought to intervene in the legal fight in a motion last week, arguing in support of a special prosecutor and saying in court filings its “top priority is to improve safety, security and cleanliness on the system.”