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Cop was one of 7 people killed in 3 days of violence in Philadelphia

No arrests had been made in six of the slayings.

Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw talks to reporters outside the emergency room entrance at Temple University Hospital in North Philadelphia after SWAT Cpl. James O’Connor IV was fatally shot on Friday.
Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw talks to reporters outside the emergency room entrance at Temple University Hospital in North Philadelphia after SWAT Cpl. James O’Connor IV was fatally shot on Friday.Read moreTIM TAI / Staff Photographer

Cpl. James O’Connor IV was one of seven people slain in Philadelphia from Friday through Sunday, pushing the city’s homicide total to 79, which is 23% higher than at the same point last year, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.

No arrests had been made in six of the slayings as of 2 p.m. Monday. The Friday morning slaying of O’Connor, 46, resulted in six people being taken into custody, none of whom has been charged in O’Connor’s death.

O’Connor was shot about 5:40 a.m. on the 1600 block of Bridge Street when he and other officers from the Special Weapons and Tactics Unit and a homicide fugitive task force entered a rowhouse seeking to arrest a man in connection with a 2019 murder.

Police provided details of six other killings, in which they said no arrests have been made and no weapons have been recovered:

  1. At 12:44 a.m. Friday, police responding to the 2000 block of Ridge Avenue for a report of gunshots found Quincy White, 25, suffering from bullet wounds to the neck, chest, and forearm. White, of the 2400 block of South Edgewood Street, was taken to Temple University Hospital, where he died at 1:10 a.m.

  2. At 12:14 a.m. Saturday, police responding to the 2800 block of North Fairhill Street for a report of a person with a gun and a person shot found Anthony Glover, 27, with multiple gunshot wounds to the face and body. Glover, of the 2900 block of North Ninth Street, was taken to Temple, where he died at 12:34 a.m.

  3. Less than three hours later, at 2:59 a.m., police responded to the 11000 block of Rennard Street for a report of a person screaming. Officers found Alexander Villaran, 20, with stab wounds to the back. He was taken to Jefferson-Torresdale Hospital, where he died at 3:50 a.m. Villaran lived in the 4100 block of North Fairhill.

  4. On Sunday, about 12:30 a.m., police were called to the 900 block of West Duncannon Street, where they found Zharif Huff-Ali, 21, with a gunshot wound to the head. He was pronounced dead at the scene by medics at 12:45 a.m. He lived in the 4900 block of North Broad Street.

  5. Shortly afterward, at 1:57 a.m., police responded to the 3800 block of Hamilton Street for a report of a person screaming. They found a man and woman inside a white Infiniti, both shot in the head. The man, Henry Peterson, 26, was also shot in the chest. Peterson, of the 5700 block of Nassau Road, was taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, where he died at 2:06 a.m. The 22-year-old woman, who was not identified, was taken to the same hospital, where she was listed in critical condition.

  6. At 8:19 p.m. Sunday, police responding to the 7800 block of Gilbert Street for a report of a person with a weapon found Anthony Warren, 25, with multiple gunshot wounds to his face and torso. Warren, who lived in the 7700 block, was taken to Albert Einstein Medical Center, where he died at 8:31 p.m.

Last month, newly hired Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw attended a gun violence hearing in City Council, during which residents fumed about the low arrest rate in slayings and how hard it is to reach homicide detectives investigating their loved ones’ slayings.

After hearing several hours of testimony, Outlaw said she looked forward to providing the proper services to the community. “Who best to address how to provide services other than those who need them?” she said to reporters. “I think everything in there was compelling, and I think it really hit home for everybody.”