UPDATE: Police arrested and identified a suspect in the stabbing. DETAILS HERE
One person died while two others were injured after a man went on a stabbing spree along a Philadelphia block Tuesday afternoon.
Police say the unidentified 55-year-old man walked into a Cricket Wireless store on the 5500 block of Baltimore Avenue around 2 p.m. and approached a 31-year-old man who was paying his bill at the counter. He then stabbed the 31-year-old in the chest, police said.
The attacker then left the store, climbed into the unlocked car of a 51-year-old man waiting outside and stabbed him in each hand, according to police. The suspect then got out of the vehicle and walked towards a 30-year-old man who was watching repairs on his car at a nearby auto mechanic shop. Police say the suspect then stabbed that man in the chest as well before fleeing the scene.
"The guy who stabbed him walked up behind him and swung him around and stabbed him and walked off," a witness told NBC10.
The 30-year-old man collapsed in the middle of the roadway and later died from his injuries. The 31-year-old and 51-year-old victims hopped into a car together and drove to the hospital. They are both in stable condition.
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Police say the attacks appear to be completely random.
"They're clearly unprovoked attacks at this point," said Philadelphia Police Lieutenant John Walker. "We're not sure what the motivation is behind this male."
Peter McDowell told NBC10 he was shaken by what transpired.
"I don't know what the world is coming to," McDowell said. "It was either drugs or a psychiatric problem. I can almost bet you."
Police recovered a weapon. They continue to search for the suspect.
The homicide was one of six that occurred in Philadelphia on Tuesday.
