Five killed and two wounded shooting in Philadelphia

Five people have been killed and two children wounded after a man wearing a bullet-proof vest opened fire in the US city of Philadelphia.

The suspected attacker, a 40-year-old man who is now in custody, was carrying an AR-15-style rifle, a handgun, a police scanner and ammunition.

He has no known connection to those killed, who police said were aged between 15 and 59 years old.

Police were called to the city's south-western Kingsessing area on Monday.

"When officers responded, they did identify and find some gunshot victims," Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said. "As they were scooping up the victims and preparing them for transport to hospital, they also heard multiple gunshots."

Officers then chased the suspect on foot while gunfire continued to ring out, damaging parked cars and littering the streets with shell casings.

At about 20:40 local time (00:40 Tuesday GMT), police cornered the man in an alleyway. He surrendered and was taken into custody without further incident.

At a news conference on Tuesday, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney described a marauding attack by an assailant wearing a bullet-proof vest and shooting indiscriminately.

Meanwhile, police have released the names of the five people who were killed:

• Daujan Brown, 15/M, unknown residence

• Lashyd Merritt, 22, from the 5500 block of Greenway Ave.

• Dymir Stanton, 29, from the 1700 block of S. Frazier St.

• Joseph Wamah, Jr., 31, from the 1600 block of S. 56th St.

• Ralph Moralis, 59, from the 1700 block of S. 56th St.

Police say two children, a 2-year-old boy and a 13-year-old boy, were shot and wounded. Another 2-year-old boy and a 33-year-old woman were injured by flying glass.

Kenney said the Southwest Philadelphia community is traumatized. “This country needs to reexamine its conscience and find out how to get guns out of dangerous people’s hands,” Kenney said. “We are begging Congress to protect lives and do something about America’s gun problem.”

A 13-year-old and 2-year-old who were injured in the shooting were taken to local hospitals where police said they are in stable condition. 

Authorities offered little new details on the shooter or the motive behind the shooting at a Tuesday afternoon press conference, but they ensured the shooter acted alone and the community is safe.

"He looked like he was fine, there wasn't anything wrong with him," a man who claims to have seen the alleged shooter a week ago said. "He told me he was a town watchman around here." 

Police are combing through evidence, including a leaked video purporting to show part of the shooting, to discover what may have lead to the shooting.

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Sarah H

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