Earlier this week, Philadelphia police released additional details about a fatal shooting involving a 12-year-old boy.
The boy was identified as Thomas Siderio, who also had a gun and was shot in the back by an officer during a foot chase.
Officials said officers saw Siderio and a 17-year-old on a street corner and noticed the 17-year-old was wanted for questioning in connection with the investigation, so they drove toward the pair.
A statement claims that the officers activated their unmarked car’s red and blue emergency lights and then heard gunfire and glass shattering from the rear window.
According to the police statement, two of the four officers immediately got out of the car and fired at Siderio as he ran. Siderio “was still in possession of his firearm” at that point.
As the officers pursued the boy, one of them fired two more shots, “striking Siderio in the upper right back area one time, with the bullet exiting from the left chest area,” the statement said. Siderio was rushed to a hospital but was pronounced dead at 7:29 p.m.
The shooting resulted in the death of a juvenile who, according to police, shot at officers first.
When asked if Siderio fired the shot during the news conference on Wednesday, Naish said the inquiry is still in the early stages.
“I can’t be definitive about exactly everything at this point. But I can be definitive that a shot was fired into the police vehicle, and the gun was recovered,” Naish said.
The bullet was found in the police car.
At Wednesday’s briefing, the deputy commissioner was asked whether officers had instructed the boy to drop his gun. “I can tell you definitively that the police officers’ vehicle had the red and blue lights indicative of police activity. I can’t get into specifics about exactly what was or wasn’t said. So, I’m just going to leave it that the police vehicle would, could be clearly identified based on the lights that this was a police vehicle.”
According to police Sgt. Eric Gripp, the two officers who fired their weapons, have been placed on administrative duty while the officer-involved shooting investigations unit reviews the case.
“No matter what the outcome of the investigation is, this is a deeply troubling incident with a tragic loss of life,” said spokesman Kevin Lessard. “The Philadelphia Police Department will conduct a fair and thorough investigation into this incident.”
