PHILADELPHIA – Onlookers were seen taunting and throwing things at Philadelphia police Wednesday night during a gun battle and subsequent standoff that saw six officers wounded, and video posted online shows one woman shoving a police officer making his way to the scene.
Philadelphia’s KYW-TV reporter Alexandria Hoff described on Twitter Wednesday night how a crowd of people bordering the blocked off active shooter scene harassed officers.
“I mentioned this at 10 and since I was harassed during that live shot, I’ll mention it here, too,” Hoff said on Twitter. “A major moment of disappointment this evening was watching a crowd of people taunt police officers, laughing and yelling at them in the midst of the gunfire.”
I mentioned this at 10 and since I was harassed during that live shot, I’ll mention it here too. A major moment of disappointment this evening was watching a crowd of people taunt police officers, laughing and yelling at them in the midst of the gunfire. #PhiladelphiaShooting
— Alexandria Hoff (@AlexandriaHoff) August 15, 2019
“I should add — 98% of people here on scene were respectful and concerned. That moment was just such a startling thing to see in the middle of something so chaotic,” she added in a separate tweet.
In another video posted by Breaking911, one woman can be seen shoving an officer from behind as he passes through the taunting crowd. Others rubberneckers yell and throw objects at police as they enter the blocked off area amid the active standoff scene.
https://twitter.com/Breaking911/status/1161802637903302656?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.foxnews.com%2Fus%2Fcrowd-of-onlookers-taunt-police-during-philadelphia-standoff-reports
Several officers with the Narcotics Strike Force were serving a warrant at the multifamily home when things “went awry almost immediately,” and the shooter opened fire, Police Commissioner Richard Ross Jr. said.
The dramatic shootout in Philadelphia stretched on for more than eight hours as six officers were shot. Two officers were trapped on the second floor of the building as the gunman shot through the first-floor ceiling and outside at responding law enforcement, Fox News reported.
After withstanding more than five hours of gunfire, SWAT officers managed to get the two officers and three hostages out of the residence safely. Finally, the gunman surrendered just after midnight Thursday, exiting the residence with his hands in the air and with a police light shining on him, surrounded by a cloud of tear gas.
