Nearly 80 Shots Fired In West Philadelphia Shooting That Injured 2 Teens, Killed 2 Men, Police Say
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Gun violence in Philadelphia continued over the Fourth of July weekend. Two teenagers were injured and at least two men were killed following a shooting in West Philadelphia.
As fireworks shot through the city, people in West Philadelphia say the sound of rapid gunfire overpowered any celebratory noise.
"I was on my bed," one neighbor said. "I hear like eight shots fire, then I hear another eight so I run out, cops say go back in the house. Police was already on the block."
The deadly scene unfolded at South 60th Street just before 11 p.m. Sunday. Hours later, you could still see remains of vehicles that were heavily damaged.
"What you see here, and the amount of bullets that are in our community and the guns that are in our community, these are war zones, it's a public safety emergency," resident Arnett Woodall said.
Police say two girls, 13 and 17 years old, were injured after the car they were riding in was struck by gunfire. The 17-year-old girl was shot in the buttocks and the 13-year-old was hit with shattered glass. Police said the 17-year-old is in stable condition. There wasn't an update for the 13-year-old, but she's expected to be OK.
Two men who were near the scene were killed.
Deputy Commissioner Robin Wimberly says three people were shot, a 17-year-old girl and two men - ages 23 and 21. The girl suffered non-life-threatening injuries while the two men were pronounced dead at Presbyterian Hospital.
"Preliminary, we can see that people were celebrating the Fourth of July, not so much a block party because the streets weren't blocked off," Wimberly said. "However, we had 78 shell casings in this street in reference to this shooting which is very troubling, very troubling."
A neighbor and close friend identified one of the victims as business owner 23-year-old Sakar.
"Sakar was a leader. He was a sweetheart. He had just had a baby. A business owner on the block. He was well respected," a neighbor told Eyewitness News.
"He was adamant about pushing his clothing line. He was into business, he was a hard worker," neighbor Akhenaton Mikell said.
The woman who did not want to show her face, says less than 24 hours ago, friends and relatives of Sakar were celebrating the business' one-year anniversary.
Now, they're cleaning up after the bloodshed.
"I was praying it wasn't him," she said. "He's definitely going to be missed and I'm praying for his family, his girlfriend, and their child."
The shooting comes just days into the new fiscal year with the city now investing $150 million to reduce gun violence.
"We want answers with this $150 million they talk about coming, we want to see it be put in real programs and real projects," Woodall said.
City officials had said that money would be used for community empowerment, employment and safe havens for kids.
The motive behind the shooting is still unknown.
No arrests have been made.
For a list of gun violence resources in Philadelphia, click here.
CBS3's Jasmine Payoute and Matt Petrillo contributed to this report.
