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Arrest made in security guard shooting at Philly Wawa after social-distancing dispute

Authorities did not identify the alleged perpetrator. Sgt. Eric Gripp, a police spokesperson, said the man was taken into custody Friday night and that charges were pending.

The Wawa on the 1300 block of  East Erie Avenue in Philadelphia's Juniata Park section was the scene of a shooting on Friday morning following a dispute over social distancing requirements, police said.
The Wawa on the 1300 block of East Erie Avenue in Philadelphia's Juniata Park section was the scene of a shooting on Friday morning following a dispute over social distancing requirements, police said.Read moreALEJANDRO A. ALVAREZ / Staff Photographer

A 22-year-old man has been arrested and will be charged with attempted murder and related crimes for shooting an off-duty security guard at a Philadelphia Wawa earlier this week following an argument about social-distancing restrictions at the convenience store, police said Saturday.

Authorities did not identify the alleged gunman. Sgt. Eric Gripp, a police spokesperson, said the man was taken into custody Friday night and that charges were pending.

Police said earlier this week that the shooting happened around 4:15 a.m. Friday after the 22-year-old argued with two security guards at the Wawa on the 1300 block of East Erie Avenue in the city’s Juniata Park section.

First, police said, he got into a dispute with a guard trying to enforce social distancing and limit the number of customers allowed inside the store. At some point after that, police said, the man got into a physical struggle with a second, off-duty security guard who works elsewhere but was at the store. The 22-year-old shot that man, age 25, in the chest, police said, then drove away in an Acura.

The victim was being treated at Temple University Hospital and was in critical condition, police said.