One Philadelphia police officer is dead and another is in stable condition after a gunman ambushed the two law enforcement officers early on Saturday morning, local officials said.
40-year-old Shane Seiber succumbed to his injuries on Saturday morning after he and his partner received a call around 1 a.m. about a man armed with a gun on the porch of a property in West Philadelphia. The two responding officers came under heavy gunfire upon approaching the home, according to Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel. Both men were immediately rushed into surgery at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center as a SWAT team and other officers arrived at the scene.
“He fought valiantly, but he lost his life today,” Bethel said of Seiber. “His wife was able to be at his side before he passed, as well as his family.”
Seiber was shot three times, while his partner, an unnamed 33-year-old father of five, was shot twelve times. Bethel said Seiber’s partner was initially in critical condition but is now in stable condition following the surgery.
The suspect continued to fire at officers as he fled the scene before being arrested and taken into custody after hiding in a tree. State Rep. Amen Brown, who lives in the neighborhood and witnessed the suspect’s arrest, said he has “an extensive criminal record” and allegedly said he wished he had killed more officers, according to CBS News.
Mayor Cherrelle Parker said Seiber “paid the ultimate price while sacrificing his life to protect and serve our city,” while Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) said the incident is a “stark reminder of the dangerous job our law enforcement has in keeping us all safe.”
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“Our law enforcement officers are the very best of us,” Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) said. “They put their lives on the line every day, running towards danger to keep their fellow Pennsylvanians safe, not knowing if they will return home. We owe them our deepest gratitude.”
Shapiro ordered all flags across Pennsylvania to be flown at half-staff. Seiber is survived by his wife and two children, a 7-year-old and a 3-year-old, and had been on the force for 10 years.