Chester City Police officers responded to three different shootings between midnight and 2:00 a.m. Saturday and apprehended three suspects -- one of whom fired at an officer during pursuit.
Chester Police officer Eric Stanford observed a shooting on duty near the 300 block of Aaron's Way at 12:43 a.m. he overheard four or five shots fired. The victim, a 29-year-old man, was taken to Crozer-Chester Medical Center for surgery and admitted in critical condition.
From the scene at 300 block Aaron's Way, police responded to another shooting at the 200 block of West 4th Street. There, a 48-year-old man was shot in the buttocks. He was admitted to the hospital in serious condition. Investigators discovered that the wall at 233 West 4th Street was also struck by projectiles.
One of the shootings was connected to yet another shooting. A 22-year-old man was trying to calm down a friend at Crozer-Chester Medical Center who went there after one of the first two shootings. When the man left the hospital, a few blocks away he was caught in the crossfire between two cars whose occupants were firing at one another. The victim was being held for observation.
Police were unable to confirm that a shooting had taken place at that location.
Meanwhile, Chester Police officers received information about a vehicle whose occupants were involved in the earlier Aaron's Way shooting. Police found and attempted to stop the vehicle, a white car with three occupants. The vehicle sped off, striking a parked car on the 300 block of Shedwick Street.
The occupants fled on foot. During the chase, one of the vehicle's occupants fired in the direction of an officer. The officer returned fire. No one was hit. In the process of pursuing the suspects, the same officer fell and broke his arm.
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Violent crime has spiked in Chester County since late July. The city saw three shootings in two days just after the Mayor suspended a state of emergency declaration he had made in June in response to shootings and homicides.
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