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Phila. Police Recover an Arsenal Where Cop Wounded

Police are canvassing the Kensington neighborhood of Philadelphia, looking for leads following Thursday night's sudden gun battle with police that left one officer wounded.

KYW's Steve Tawa reports that officer Kevin Livewell is listed in stable condition and described as being in good spirits as he remains hospitalized (see related story).

Meanwhile, police say they are looking for two additional Hispanic males.  One suspect, the driver of the van that was being investigated by Livewell and his partner, was tackled by Livewell's partner after Livewell was shot in the leg.

(Story continues below...)

At police headquarters today, replicas of the eight weapons recovered from the scene were laid out on a table, including an SKS assault rifle, an AK-47, and two AR-15s (similar to military M-16s) -- all of which can pierce body armor, according to deputy police commissioner Richard Ross:

"We're just fortunate that we were able to have two of our officers here standing with us today."

Ross (at lectern in photo) says it's "frightening" the damage those weapons could have done:

"These are all state-of-the-art weapons.  None of these are junk that you may associate with street violence."

Police commissioner Charles Ramsey (second from right in photo) said, "We don't know what the three were up to, but it was certainly no good."

He says that when police pulled to within 20 feet of the van, two men jumped out and opened up:

"They were very, very well armed and will not hesitate to use these weapons."

Police officials say Livewell will need more surgery on his leg this weekend.  He's 30 years old and has been on the force for nine years.

(Photos by KYW's Steve Tawa)

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