After a Temple University police officer was shot and killed close to the campus in north Philadelphia, authorities say they quickly apprehended two youths, which resulted in an arrest just hours later in a nearby county.
Officer Christopher Fitzgerald, 31, saw three people Saturday night in a location where there had been a number of robberies and carjackings.
Temple University Officer Killed While On Duty
They were all wearing masks and were all dressed in black, according to the police. After two of the group fled, he pursued the third and was fatally shot while doing so.
The homicide unit commander, Staff Inspector Ernest Ransom, told reporters on Tuesday that a patrol supervisor listening to the police radio sped to the scene and apprehended two evading teenagers, ages 16 and 17, who later provided information that resulted in the arrest of Miles Pfeffer, 18, the following morning in Bucks County.
According to Jennifer Griffin, the director of public safety at the university, Fitzgerald was the first Temple University police officer to die in the line of duty. He joined the school’s police department in October 2021 and is a father of five kids.
The struggle can be seen on video, according to the police, of Fitzgerald catching up to Pfeffer and ordering him to the ground before a sport utility vehicle. Pfeffer allegedly pulled out a handgun, and according to police, he fired six shots, three of which struck the officer as he lay on the ground.
He was taken into custody early on Sunday at a sizable farmstead dating back to the 18th century in posh Buckingham, Bucks County, which is reportedly co-owned by his mother. Police reported that although several weapons were found there, the murder weapon was not found.
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Students With Social, Emotional Issues
According to a school official, Pfeffer, who turned 18 last month, attended New Hope Academy, a private school for teenagers with social, emotional, or other problems or those who do not succeed in conventional settings.
According to a spokesperson, he also spent some time at the vocational high school Middle Bucks Institute of Technology. She stated that he had started in that program in September 2020 and had most recently attended on Thursday.
Pfeffer rode his bus for two years, made mention of wanting to work on an oil rig, and never caused him any trouble, a retired school bus driver told a local newspaper.
He faces charges of murder, criminally killing a law enforcement officer, disarming an officer, robbing a person, stealing, avoiding arrest, and using a weapon. He is accused of robbery, theft, terroristic threats, and other crimes in connection with the subsequent carjacking.
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