An attempted package theft in Feltonville turned into a police shootout

Philadelphia police are searching for a man they say tried to steal a package from the front steps of a Feltonville home, then exchanged gunfire with both the homeowner and responding officers before fleeing Sunday evening.

Security camera footage from a home in the 400 block of East Rockland Street shows a man approaching the front steps and attempting to take a package, police said. The homeowner, a 50-year-old man, came outside carrying a handgun and confronted him, police said.

The homeowner fired a shot into the ground, police said, prompting the man to run. As he fled, the man fired a gun at the homeowner, they said.

Officers who had been called to the area after reports of a crowd and a person with a weapon on the 4900 block of D Street heard the gunfire and ran toward it, police said. When they encountered the man, police said, he fired his weapon at one of the officers, and the officer fired back.

The man escaped, police said. Officers later recovered a .40-caliber handgun and a jacket on Rockland Street.

Police described the suspect as light-skinned with a stocky build, and a possible goatee. He was last seen wearing a brown coat, black pants, and gray sneakers.

Police ask that anyone with information about the man or the shooting call or text police at 215-683-1866.

The Philadelphia Fraternal Order of Police is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

The officer who fired his weapon has been placed on administrative duty, as is customary, pending an internal investigation, police said. His name has not been released.