New Details Amid 3 Philadelphia Officers Shot in Wynnefield

New Details Emerge After 3 Philadelphia Officers Shot in Wynnefield Confrontation

Philadelphia police are continuing to investigate a weekend confrontation in Wynnefield that left three officers wounded and a 57-year-old man dead after an exchange of gunfire.

Authorities identified the man as Eric Franks, a retired firefighter, Marine veteran and business owner with ties to the area near 54th and Arlington streets, where the shooting unfolded shortly after 10:30 p.m. Saturday.

According to police, officers were responding to reports of a vehicle struck by gunfire when they encountered Franks near the scene. Commissioner Kevin Bethel said officers were trying to establish a crime scene when the interaction escalated. Police say Franks shoved a sergeant, and as officers attempted to detain him, he pulled a gun and opened fire.

One officer was struck in the face, another in the hip and a third in the leg, according to police radio traffic and department officials. A fourth officer was not injured. All four officers returned fire, killing Franks, who was struck in the chest and leg and later pronounced dead at a hospital.

“I got hit. I got hit,” one officer could be heard saying over police radio. “The officers shot need help.”

An attorney representing Franks’ family said relatives are searching for answers about what led to the deadly encounter.

“Things, for whatever reason, escalated to where now a man is dead and three other officers were injured,” attorney James Funt said. “So something happened. What that was? We’re hoping to find out.”

Funt said Franks had gone to the scene after receiving a phone call from his son about a shooting in the area.1 Police said preliminary information indicates Franks was not connected to the original shooting officers were investigating.

Investigators recovered nearly 50 pieces of ballistic evidence and a licensed 9mm handgun from the scene, according to police.

Family friends told 6abc they were stunned by the violence. “We’re just shocked that has happened to him,” Jesse Keller of Overbrook said. “The cameras do speak for itself, but I can’t judge. I’m just shocked about the whole thing.”

Police said the injured officers — a 39-year-old sergeant with eight years on the force, a 30-year-old officer with seven years and a 43-year-old officer with one year — are recovering. Bethel said they remain “in great spirits” despite their injuries.

The shooting remains under investigation.

New Details Emerge After 3 Philadelphia Officers Shot in Wynnefield Confrontation was originally published on rnbphilly.com