Money was taken from a crashed minivan and a SEPTA bus wound up crashed into a Northeast Philadelphia bank in a wreck that police said was caused by an apparently stolen car.
Police responded to the scene along Rising Sun Avenue, near Martins Mill Road in the Lawndale section of the city, around 1:30 a.m. to find an articulated bus crashed into a PNC Bank branch with a crashed Hyundai sedan on one side and the wreck minivan behind it.
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Several People Hurt, Some Trapped
Medics took an unresponsive young man from the passenger seat of the wrecked Hyundai, Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small. He was listed in critical condition at the hospital with head trauma.
Firefighters had to remove part of the minivan to free the trapped driver, Small said. That man, believed to be in his 30s, was hospitalized in stable condition.
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The SEPTA bus driver -- a man in his 60s -- suffered injuries to his face and head, Small said. He was listed in stable condition at the hospital.
All three passengers on board the SEPTA bus got off and left before talking to police, Small said.
"They didn't even stick around as witnesses," Small said.
How did this happen?
"The vehicle we believe that started the accident was the Hyundai," Small said. "It was stolen last week from Northeast Philadelphia."
After the wreck, the driver of the Hyundai got out of the stolen car and into a Volkswagen that was apparently following the Hyundai at the time, Small said. Police found blood on the driver's side of the Hyundai so it's possible the driver was hurt.
The stolen Hyundai fits the description of the car used in several recent robberies in Northeast Philadelphia, Small said. Detectives would investigate.
A Theft From the Wreckage
Police real-time crime camera footage showed someone getting into the crashed minivan and taking something --believed to be a large amount of cash -- while the minivan driver was trapped, Small said. The minivan driver is believed to be a businessman.
Nothing appeared to be taken from the bank. Licenses and Inspections came out to investigate if the bank was structurally sound, which it is, Small said. Power crews also had to cut power to the building.
After several hours, crews removed the vehicles and Rising Sun Avenue reopened. A hole was visible in the bank branch.
