Kimbrady Carriker and the 2023 Kingsessing Mass Shooting
Overview
Kimbrady Carriker carried out a deadly shooting spree in the Kingsessing neighborhood of Southwest Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, during July 2 and July 3, 2023. Armed with an AR-15-style rifle and a semiautomatic handgun, Carriker killed five people and wounded or otherwise injured four others. The victims appeared to have been selected at random as Carriker moved through residential streets firing at pedestrians, occupied vehicles and nearby homes.
The primary attack occurred during the evening of July 3, 2023, when Carriker walked through Kingsessing wearing a ski mask, body armor and ammunition magazines. Investigators later determined that the violence had begun approximately 44 hours earlier with the killing of Joseph Wamah Jr. inside a neighborhood residence. Carriker was arrested after a police pursuit and was found carrying multiple weapons and additional ammunition.
The First Killing
At approximately 12:30 a.m. on July 2, 2023, Carriker entered a residence in the 1600 block of South 56th Street and shot 31-year-old Joseph Wamah Jr. Investigators said Wamah was shot repeatedly inside the home. His body was not discovered until after the larger shooting spree unfolded the following evening.
A person called 911 during the early hours of July 2 and reported hearing gunfire near the location. However, a dispatching error sent responding officers to an incorrect address several miles away. Officers found no evidence of a shooting at that location, and attempts to contact the caller again were unsuccessful. Wamah remained undiscovered for more than 40 hours. Police later acknowledged the error and opened an internal investigation into how the incorrect address had been transmitted.
The July 3 Shooting Spree
At approximately 8:30 p.m. on July 3, Carriker began walking through Kingsessing while carrying an AR-15-style rifle and a handgun. He wore a bullet-resistant vest containing several ammunition magazines and concealed part of his face with a ski mask. Surveillance recordings and police body-camera footage later showed Carriker moving through the neighborhood and firing repeatedly without warning.
Carriker opened fire on people standing or walking along the streets and shot into occupied vehicles. Investigators described the firing as aimless or indiscriminate, with no confirmed personal connection between Carriker and most of the victims. The attack extended for approximately one mile through several residential blocks.
Lashyd Merritt, 20, was shot while traveling through the neighborhood. Dymir Stanton, 29, was also fatally shot during the rampage. Ralph Moralis, 59, was killed while outside in the area. Fifteen-year-old DaJuan Brown was shot after reportedly attempting to help a wounded friend. All four victims were killed during the July 3 portion of the attack.
A 2-year-old boy and a 13-year-old boy suffered gunshot wounds. Another 2-year-old boy and an adult woman were injured by shattered glass when bullets struck a vehicle. The wounded children survived after receiving emergency medical treatment.
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