Police shoot man who walked through South Philly armed with rifle, officials say

Police shot a man who they say was walking around with a rifle in South Philadelphia after officials visited his home for an inspection, investigators said.

After the incident, a rifle could be seen resting in the street.

According to Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore, the incident happened just before 11 a.m. on March 19 after officers with the city's Sheriff's office along with a Licenses and Inspections employee visited a property on the 1900 block of Morris Street for an inspection.

At that time, Vanore said, a 36-year-old man answered the door while armed with a rifle equipped with a scope.

"He came to the door. He did not let them enter. And then, he exited and started to walk away from the property," Vanore said.

He walked, with the firearm in his hand, from the 1900 block of Morris Street, south on 18th Street as "numerous uniformed officers responded to the scene," according to investigators.

He then headed east on Moore Street to the 1600 block near Chadwick Street where he encountered officers calling for him to drop the weapon, Vanore said.

At that point, the man turned to face the officers and one officer fired their own weapon, striking the man on his right side, according to investigators.

"He was walking with the firearm. He wasn't stopped anywhere so, he was a danger," Vanore said. "So, they were doing everything they can to surround and isolate him. Our SWAT unit was en route. It just happened very quickly and the officers that were here took the necessary action to keep everyone else in the area safe."

The man has been taken to the hospital where he was listed in critical condition, Vanore said.

No officers were injured in this incident, officials said.

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Also, Vanore did not say how many shots were fired in this incident.

But, Sará Fleming-Donley, who lives near where the shooting occurred, told NBC10 that she heard, what she thought, were "four or five" gunshots.

"I'm just still wondering what happened. What brought this about?" she asked. "I don't know what to think."

In video obtained by NBC10, the man can be seen walking around erratically with the rifle in his hand. The video shows him walking into traffic when he approaches a red car. The driver of that car runs away presumably terrified by the man holding a weapon.

Later, police can be seen pointing their guns at him before he falls to the ground and they surround him.

Police have not immediately provided further information on the incident nor the man's identity or charges he may face.

But, NBC10 has reached out to law enforcement officials for more information.

This is a breaking news story. It will updated as new information becomes available.