2 in custody after shots fired near Temple University; another shooter at large: police
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Two people were taken into custody after shots were fired in North Philadelphia near Temple University Sunday evening, the Temple University Police Association police said.
The shots were fired in the 1600 block of Sydenham Street at around 7 p.m., according to TUalert, Temple's notification system.
Philadelphia police said about 30 juveniles dispersed at the 1600 block of Sydenham Street after officers arrived.
TUPA said one shooter, who was wearing a pink hoodie with dreads and a skull cap, is still at large.
Officers are once again contending with a large group of juveniles at Broad/Cecil B Moore. Although this situation is not new for TUPD and PPD, it is becoming a more frequent occurrence without a plan in place to address it.
— Temple University Police Association (@officialTUPA) March 31, 2024
03/31/24- 6:55pm
Shooting incident: 1600 N Sydenham St…
TUPA said officers apprehended two people after pursuing them through the Temple Towers parking lot. One apprehension was made at 1700 Liacouras Walk on Temple's main campus and the other was made at 12th and Jefferson streets, according to TUPA.
TUPA said officers recovered one firearm and were searching for a second one.
Philly police said they found 11 shell casings in the area of 1600 Sydenham Street.
On Sunday, TUPA said officers responded to a "large group of juveniles" at the intersection of Broad Street and Cecil B. Moore Avenue.
TUPA is also looking into a report of a student's car being struck by gunfire in the 1500 block of Oxford Street.
TUalertEMER: Police have cleared the area on the 1600 block of Sydenham Street.
— TUalert (@TempleAlert) April 1, 2024
Police remained in the area of Broad and Cecil B. Moore due to about 60 juveniles in the area.
Last week, three people were arrested after about 100 to 200 "unruly juveniles" were throwing rocks and bricks at police on Temple's campus at the intersection of Broad and Cecil B. Moore.
Vice President and Chief for Public Safety Jennifer Griffin said these kinds of meetups are normally posted on social media ahead of time. Once the Department of Public Safety and TUPD catch word of a meetup, they loop in the Philadelphia Police Department and the organizations tag team to keep the area safe.
"Several young children are facing serious charges related to criminal activity that happened during meetups in multiple locations across Philadelphia from earlier this year. PPD and TUPD will continue to take a strong approach to these illegal behaviors that disrupt the quality of life of our community," Griffin said in a release by Temple University.
The release added that some of the people taking part in these meetups are children as young as 10 years old.
Other safety tactics the university has implemented include stationing a marked police car at the corner of Broad and Cecil B. Moore during heavy foot traffic times and adding an officer to patrol that corner at all times.
Temple said they pay for 288 hours of extra police patrols from the Philadelphia Police Department to help promote campus safety.
Griffins asks anyone with information related to Sunday night's meetup to contact Philly police or Temple police at 215-204-1234.