2 slain in separate Chester shootings

Police in Chester are seeking suspects in two unrelated slayings that occurred just 90 minutes and a half-mile apart Wednesday night and are offering a $5,000 reward for information.

In the first case, someone shot a 31-year-old man in a car at 6:45 p.m. at 16th and Upland streets, police said. The victim, whose name wasn't released, was hit in the head and right arm as he sat in the driver's seat. He died at the scene. Witnesses reported seeing another man run from the area.

An hour later, police hurried to the 1100 block of Morton Avenue, where several people had been shot. Officers arrived to find city firefighters, who'd been dousing a trash fire nearby and sprang into action when they heard gunfire, tending to two seriously injured men. Those men, along with a third victim, who had fled the gunfire into a nearby home, were taken by ambulance to Crozer Chester Medical Center. There, a 27-year-old man, shot in the back, died from his wounds, police said. The two other men, both in their 20s, remain hospitalized.

Mayor Thaddeus Kirkland said it was important for the public to cooperate and call police with any information in the slayings.

"We are actively going after these individuals," he said.

Kirkland said Chester police will be taking a "broken windows philosophy" and address all quality of life issues, such as abandoned cars or illegal signage that would block views of activity in stores.

Chester police will also be enlisting the help of law enforcement at the housing authority to evict people involved with crimes from Section 8 homes, he said.

Police reported no suspects or motives in either case. Tipsters who know anything about either shooting are asked to call Chester detectives at (610) 447-8433 or Delaware County investigators at (610) 891-4700.

Inquirer staff writer Mari A. Schaefer contributed to this article.