Police arrest man for shooting near Loper Street

A Philadelphia man was one of three arrests reported in what police are calling a rash of unconnected shootings in town over the last couple of weeks.

The man, Jeff F. Malone, 33, of 253 Cora Street, was arrested and charged with DUI, misdemeanor possession of marijuana, and exhibiting a weapon in a threatening manner, Police Chief Eric Lyons said.

Malone was arrested around 4 a.m. on Aug. 24 near Loper Street.

According to Lyons, while on the scene investigating another shooting on Beacon Street, PPD officers heard shots being fired a few blocks over on Loper Street. He said dispatch advised that a shots fired call had come in from that area saying a man fired shots at his girlfriend while driving in front of a residence on the 300 block of Loper Street.

“No one was injured in that shooting,” Lyons said. “Officers obtained a vehicle description and located the shooter within minutes. This male was taken into custody and a gun was recovered.”

Lyons said his department investigated a number of shootings last week.

“The Philadelphia Police Department will continue to investigate and stop the senseless shooting from continuing,” Lyons said. “We will increase patrol and put more officers in places of concern until we take back control of the city.”

The two other arrests that night already reported in the Democrat last week included Fredy Amaya-Marin, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador who shot at random cars on Beacon Street, and Cassidy Johnson, a Decatur man who shot an ex-girlfriend’s new lover in the head at her residence on Donald Avenue. Both were arrested in the early morning hours of Aug. 24 before police made contact with Malone.