Attackers fatally shoot man in his car before attempting to set it on fire, Philadelphia police say
Two attackers attempted to set a car on fire after fatally shooting the driver early Thursday morning, Philadelphia police said.
Now, investigators are searching for the armed suspects and trying to determine why they went after this driver, a 45-year-old man whose identity has not yet been released.
Officers were called to an alley on the 4300 block of Malta Street, in Juniata Park, just after 12:30 a.m., Capt. Timothy Stephan said.
When they arrived, they found a red Dodge SUV engulfed in flames, according to a police spokesperson. There was a man in the driver's seat, dead from a gunshot wound to the back of the head.
Investigators found burn marks on the back seat, which they believe were caused by the suspects trying to set the vehicle on fire.
Stephan said detectives have spoken with a witness.
"They said they thought they heard one single gunshot around 11:30 this evening," Stephan said. "So officers then canvassed some more neighbors' houses, found some video surveillance. It showed two individuals fleeing the location."
The man's wife called the police after he never showed up to pick her up from work on Wednesday night. She then used her phone to track his location to the alley, police said.
No arrests have been made. Police are trying to figure out how the man ended up in the alley, because he's not from that neighborhood.
The man survived a separate shooting back on March 31, Stephan said.