88-year-old man fatally shot inside car in West Philadelphia ID'd: police
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Police are searching for a person who gunned down a beloved grandfather behind the wheel of his car in West Philadelphia Tuesday afternoon.
Relatives say Richard Butler, 88, was full of life - seen dancing with family members at a party just last weekend. But on Tuesday afternoon, he had just dropped off a friend when police said he was shot in the intersection on the 100 block of North Dewey Street around 1:35 p.m.
Officers arriving on the scene found Butler was shot twice in the chest inside a white Hyundai. The driver-side window had a huge hole in it, and the Hyundai was still running.
Family members said Butler was shot, lost control of the car and crashed into the flower planter.
Police said they used a crowbar to pry open the car. Butler was taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, where he later died.
Relatives said Butler is an Air Force veteran, a retired SEPTA bus driver and a man beloved by many. They're at a loss for who could do this.
"So many kids in the neighborhood know my father. Every summer when we were younger, he'd take the whole block to Atlantic City, Wildwood. [He would] take everyone to get water ice, ice cream. I'm talking about an outstanding guy, a fixture in the community," Orlando Butler said. "Everyone knows my father."
The victim's niece, Minette Finn, remembered Richard Butler as "pops, dad, uncle, brother to everyone."
"Every day he stops at Wawa," Finn said. "Apparently the Wawa he goes to, I was just told, they made him an honorable customer of the year."
As police search for the gunman, this family is left with more questions than answers.
"There's too many families in this city that's going through this every day," Finn said. "We're not the only one ... Where does it stop?"
Police do not have a motive at this time. They also did not recover a weapon.
The investigation is ongoing.
