Philadelphia police officer injured in Fairhill shooting released from Temple University Hospital
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A Philadelphia police officer was released from Temple University Hospital Monday afternoon following a shooting that broke out inside a Fairhill corner store Friday night.
The officer has not been publicly identified yet, but Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #5 said he works in the 24th District.
"We're are pleased that we're not here planning a funeral," Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #5 President Roosevelt Poplar said. "It could have been a lot worse."
Officers gathered outside of Temple University Hospital as the officer was pushed in a wheelchair.
"We're just very thankful that he's going to be OK," Interim Executive Director Citizens Police Oversight Commission Anthony Erace said. "It's a tragedy from all sides. Someone lost their life in this incident."
The officer will continue to recover as police investigate a deadly shooting in North Philly inside of a corner store on Friday night.
A key piece of evidence is a video which was posted on social media showing a portion of the incident.
In it, two gunshots can be heard as an officer is seen holding down, who police said is 28-year-old Alexander Spencer, who later died at Temple University Hospital.
"It's a piece of evidence and not the totality of evidence, so there's a lot to figure out here," Erace said.
Police said once they were inside the corner store Friday night, they approached a group of men who were standing inside. Then, while trying to stop one of the men, police said, a man now identified as Spencer, got into a scuffle with the officers and fired a shot, striking the 24th District officer in the leg.
The officer's partner then fired his weapon in response, striking Spencer.
The video depicting a portion of the incident is leading the mother of Spencer's children, Crystal Rodriguez, to question what led up to the shooting.
In a statement in part, she said: "A life was taken, and his family deserves justice…. He will not be able to make it to his son's first birthday party. He will not be able to walk his daughter to school on her first day. These children have to grow up without a father."
Officials said Friday night during the altercation, Spencer's gun fell on the floor and Jose Quinones-Mendez picked up the gun and left the store.
"The possibility of that gun being used in the future, you know is more likely than not, it will be." Poplar said.
The Philadelphia FOP is now offering a $10,000 reward for any information that leads to Quinones-Mendez's arrest, the organization shared in a release Monday.
"It's trying to get, trying to recover a crucial piece of evidence in this case that could shed a lot of light as to what transpired so I think what was unusual about this was that the weapon was stolen from the crime scene," Erace said.
Officials said the 24th District officer's partner is on administrative duty as the shooting is under investigation.
