Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker) Kimbrady Carriker
Kimbrady Carriker was identified as the suspect accused of shooting seven people in a random rampage in Philadelphia on July 3, 2023, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer and Fox29.
Five people died in the mass shooting, according to the Philadelphia police chief. Fox29 reported that one of the victims was found inside a home; a lot of the gunfire occurred on the street, according to the chief. The shooting happened about 8:30 p.m. in the area of 56th Street and Chester Avenue in southwestern Philadelphia, according to WPVI.
On Facebook, Carriker shared videos of guns and expressed concern that President Biden was going to take away gun rights. The Facebook page was taken down by the social media company after Carriker was named as the suspected gunman, but Heavy viewed the posts before the page was removed.
Multiple posts on the page dealt with concern that people’s guns will be taken away by government. Carriker shared videos of children with guns. He also shared a post about supporting President Trump. Carriker also shared a photo of a raised hand that is used by the BLM, or Black Lives Matter, movement. The suspect also appears to have had a Soundcloud account.
Authorities have not identified Carriker as transgender or a woman (U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene tweeted that Carriker was a “trans shooter”). Police referred to the suspect as a male. Neighbors told The New York Post that they had seen Carriker dress as a woman and did not think Carriker was capable of violence. “He would do it randomly,” a neighbor told The Post. “He was weird, to tell you the truth, but he was a nice guy.”
According to CNN, the district attorney’s office used they/them pronouns for Carriker but later referred to Carrier as a male.
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, Carriker told police the shooting motive was to try to help authorities solve the city’s gun crisis. “All these guys are out there killing people,” Carriker said to police, according to the Inquirer, which reported that the suspect believed “Yahweh” would send others to help. The Inquirer reported that one witness said Carriker shouted “battle cries” during the rampage and a roommate called Carriker a “Biblical extremist.”
“We mourn the loss of 5 innocent lives and stand w/ those impacted during this tragic time. Our deepest condolences go out to them. I want to commend our brave @PPD12Dist officers who responded swiftly to this horrific shooting. Their courage, dedication, & restraint saved lives,” Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw wrote on Twitter.
Police later named the five victims as Daujan Brown, 15; Lashyd Merritt, 20; Dymir Stanton, 29; Joseph Wamah Jr., 31; and Ralph Moralis, 59, according to Fox29.
Police said they didn’t believe there was a connection between Carriker and any of the victims, Outlaw said at a news conference.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Kimbrady Carriker Was Wearing a Ballistic Vest With Multiple Magazines & Was Carrying a Scanner, the Police Chief Says
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker
At 8:29 p.m., officers were flagged down and received multiple calls about gunfire, and responding officers found gunshot victims, police said. As they were preparing them for transport, they heard multiple gunshots “up the street,” Outlaw said at a news conference.
Officers located Carriker and pursued him in a foot chase as he continued shooting, Outlaw said. He was apprehended in the rear alley. He was wearing a ballistic vest with multiple magazines carried in it, Outlaw said. He also had a scanner and an AR-style rifle and a handgun, she said.
The weapons were “ghost guns,” according to CNN.
The cable news network reported that Carriker had a 2003 gun conviction.
He was taken into custody, she said. “Once he was cornered in the alley, the officers gave him commands to show his hands,” according to Outlaw.
There were 50 spent shell casings, she said, adding that several vehicles were hit by gunfire.
🚨#BREAKING: Multiple Injuries and Fatalities as Gunman Opens Fires randomly
📌#Philadelphia | #PA
There is currently a strong police presence in the Kingsessing neighborhood of Philadelphia, PA. This is because of a serious incident involving a mass shooting, where eight…
She said authorities are still trying to figure out the “why this happened.”
2. Kimbrady Carriker Was Described as Creative & ‘Cool’ But With ‘An Aggressive Approach’
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker
Tina Rossette, a former roommate of Carriker’s, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that he was “really smart, intelligent, creative,” and interested in computers.
“I didn’t even know he had a gun,” Rosette told The Inquirer, adding that Carriker had “an aggressive approach to some things in life.”
Rossette’s daughter, Cianni Rosette, told the newspaper that Carriker showed her a handgun but was “cool” and creative. She told the newspaper that she had rejected Carriker for a romantic relationship, her mother said that he was in a “dark place” although she said it wasn’t clear why.
3. Kimbrady Carriker Wrote About Gun Rights & Anti-Violence Programs on Facebook
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker.
On Facebook, Carriker went by the name “Kimbrady Watson Carriker” before the page was removed.
The page’s profile picture showed Keanu Reeves in “The Matrix.” Its top post, from the day before the mass shooting, was a YouTube video that shows a gun. Carriker recently shared an article that was captioned, “How do you know if an evil spirit is following you?” and also shared a story about a Philadelphia anti-violence initiative.
“I found this on NewsBreak: Philly anti-violence grant program shows promising results, despite some hiccups, new evaluation shows,” Carriker wrote with that post.
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker Facebook post.
Just days before the mass shooting, Carriker quoted Bible verses on Facebook and wrote, “But we prayed to our God and guarded the city day and night to protect ourselves” and “But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.”
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker Facebook post.
On June 23, Carriker wrote, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. #We fight Daemons and Devils.”
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker Facebook post.
Carriker sometimes wrote about political issues, and he shared memes negative to President Biden. “Don’t be fooled. Wawa is closing in Philly because of $15 minimum wage. They will be back with cashless stores and all the sheep will cheer that their brother is unemployed,” he wrote.
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker post.
Carriker wrote, “During community patrols I have notice a big shame. So many of our 50 + 60 + 70 year old elders are influencing the youth negatively. They are without a doubt promoting and participating in robbing, prostitution, scamming, and murder. When one of their monsters is killed they cry foul. Boohoo, these pillars; these old ass people who should know better kill our youth.”
Carriker shared a symbol used by BLM:
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker Facebook post.
Carriker shared a video of Biden and wrote, “This y’all president. We said 2A defends our rights. Now it’s god save the queen while he attempts to take our arms.” He also shared a video headlined, “Biden turns red coat, in latest gun grabbing speech,” and wrote, “I told you he wanted your rights. GOD SAVE THE QUEEN SAYS BIDEN.”
Carriker also shared a post from President Trump’s Patriot Army that reads, “Who supports President Trump in 2024?”
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker Facebook post.
He shared a photo of a sweatshirt that read, “I lubricate my AR-15 with liberal tears.” He shared a YouTube video of Tucker Carlson that said he humiliated Eric Swalwell, a Democratic U.S. congressman from California.
4. Kimbrady Carriker, Who Referred to Himself as a ‘Torn Angel’ on Facebook, Worked in IT
Carriker’s Facebook profile page read, “Torn Angel – We are” and said Carriker was the “owner at LDS Frame Works” and a former director of IT and development who studied at the Lincoln Technical Institute and Cittone Institute. Carriker went to Bonita Vista Senior High School and lives in and is from Philadelphia, the page said.
A second person is in custody, according to the police chief. That person may have picked up someone’s gun and “returned fire,” according to Outlaw. Outlaw said that person, who was not named, shot in the direction of Carriker, although the chief did not name the suspect in the press conference.
The police chief described Carrier as a 40-year-old African-American male.
5. The Philly Mass Shooting Comes on the Heels of a Mass Shooting at a Block Party in Baltimore
Facebook (Kimbrady Carriker)Kimbrady Carriker.
The Philadelphia mass shooting comes the day after a mass shooting at a Baltimore, Maryland, block party left two dead and 28 injured, according to CNN.
In 2022, there were 647 mass shootings in the United States, according to the Gun Violence Archive. In 2021, there were 690 mass shootings, the Archive reported, and in 2020 there were 610. According to the Gun Violence Archive, before the pandemic there were fewer mass shootings in the United States. For example, the Archive reports that there were 383 shootings in 2016, 348 mass shootings in 2017, and 336 in 2018.
According to the Philadelphia Police Department’s crime statistics dashboard, there were 516 homicide victims in the City of Philadelphia in 2022, police say on the website. In 2021, there were 562 total homicide victims for the entire year, which was a dramatic increase and marked the highest total since at least 2007, according to the police crime statistics page. In 2013, homicide dropped to 246 victims, according to the Philadelphia Police Department.
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