A weekend of shootings & a stolen cop car

Machete-wielding robbers, a man who was quicker on the draw than two home-invasion suspects and a stolen police car were among the most notable instances of five criminal reports in the city this past weekend.

1About 5:10 a.m. yesterday, a 21-year-old man walking along Porter Street near South 5th, in South Philadelphia, was approached by two men, one of whom was armed with a machete, South Detectives said.

They took $250 from the victim, fled the area and remain on the lam, according to police.

2A shooting yesterday morning in what police called a "high drug-trafficking area" in Strawberry Mansion left three people critically wounded, including a 66-year-old woman.

Central Detectives said the three were outside drinking on Stanley Street near Huntingdon, in an area where numerous shootings have occurred in the last month, when they were hit by bullets from multiple gunmen about 1:30 a.m.

The 66-year-old woman was shot once in the left shoulder and once in the back, police said. A 56-year-old man was shot once in the left arm, once in the abdomen and once in the left thigh, and a 48-year-old woman was shot once in the back, once in the buttocks and once in the left leg, according to police. All remain in critical condition at Temple University Hospital.

3Police were sent out looking for one of their own Saturday morning when a locked cruiser was stolen from the parking lot of the 35th Police District between 4 and 6 a.m., said Lt. Frank Vanore, a police spokesman.

Two 39th District officers had parked the cruiser in the lot, rolled up the windows and locked the doors when they went in to Northwest Detectives, housed at the 35th District at Broad and Champlost streets, about 4 a.m., police said.

When they emerged about 6 a.m. their marked cruiser - number 3923, a 2008 Chevy - was missing from the lot, Vanore said.

A set of extra keys was left in the center console, Vanore said, but when the car was located about 1 p.m. about two miles away on 21st Street near 73rd Avenue, there were no signs of forced entry or damage.

Vanore said a resident on the block reported seeing a man in a navy blue jacket wearing a police hat get out of the car and toss the hat back in the vehicle. The thief most likely wore the hat, which was left in the cruiser, to lower his odds of being stopped, Vanore said.

Police have not yet identified the suspect but they hope fingerprints on the car will help pinpoint his identity.

"Luckily, we got a very expensive piece of equipment back," Vanore said.

4About 4:50 a.m. Saturday on I Street near Bristol in Juniata Park, a homeowner was awakened by two robbers, one of whom was armed. The men ordered him to get out of bed and demanded money, East Detectives said.

Instead of complying, the homeowner struggled with the men and drew a gun of his own, shooting one of the suspects - Kevin Briscoe, 18, of Fairhill Street near Hunting Park Avenue - three times in the arm, police said.

Both suspects fled the home through a rear door. Police later arrested Briscoe on robbery, assault and weapons offenses when he went to Albert Einstein Medical Center for treatment. Briscoe remains in stable condition and his co-conspirator remains at large, East Detectives said.

5A 24-year-old man was listed in critical condition at Temple yesterday after being shot multiple times on 31st Street near Cumberland in Northwest Philadelphia about 2:35 a.m. Saturday, according to police. Authorities are still seeking a motive and a suspect in the case.

6A man who allegedly pointed a gun at police officers Friday night escaped injury when an officer fired at him, but missed.

Two 19th District officers saw two men fitting the description of robbery suspects on Sherwood Road near Haverford Avenue in West Philadelphia about 11:45 p.m., police said.

When they attempted to stop the men, they fled on foot and one of them, later identified as Darrius McCray, 21, of 11th Street near York in North Philadelphia, drew a gun and pointed it at the officers, prompting one of the cops to shoot, Vanore said.

The officer missed and both men were later apprehended on Brentwood Road near 75th Street.

Police never connected the men to the robbery so the other man was released while McCray was charged with aggravated assault on a police officer and weapons charges, Vanore said.

McCray's firearm, a semiautomatic, was recovered, according to police.