Philly shooter's first victim gunned down 2 days prior to rampage

It has been revealed that Philadelphia Independence Day weekend mass shooter Kimbrady Carriker reportedly killed his first victim nearly two days before the attack took place. After gunning down Joseph Wamah Jr, 31, inside his home, Carriker allegedly went on to shoot four more people.

Carriker turned himself in to police following the rampage, and has since been arraigned on a several charges, including five counts of murder, attempted murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm without a license, and carrying firearms in public.



"It has been determined through information received through a source and corroborated by the Philadelphia Medical Examiner's Office and additional evidence; that homicide victim Joseph Wamah Jr was killed by suspect Kimbrady Carriker approximately 44 hours before the mass shooting incident that occurred on 7/3/23 at 8:28 PM," a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Police wrote in a statement on Sunday.

Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner added that while the revelation has been "re-traumatizing" for Wamah's family, it "has not changed the number or type of charges we have filed against defendant Carriker."

According to NBC Philadelphia, police received a 911 call around 2am on July 2 reporting gunshots near 1600 South 56th Street. The address was incorrectly jotted down as 1600 North 56th Street, and when officers arrived on scene, they were "unable to immediately identify any calls for reports of gunshots."

Investigators have said they believe Wamah was killed just 90 minutes after the original call was placed.

The 40-year-old gunman, wearing a bulletproof vest and armed with an AR-15 style rifle and a handgun, went on to murder four other people near South 56th Street and Chester Avenue on July 3 before finally being cornered by police. The victims were later identified as Lashyd Merritt, Dymire Stanton, Ralph Morales, and DaJuan Brown.

During a search of Carriker's home, authorities discovered a handwritten note dated June 23, but did not go into detail regarding what it included. His roommates noted that he had been increasingly agitated as of late, and would often wear the bulletproof vest around the house.