Officers attacked during illegal car meetups across Philadelphia

( WPHL )— Several Philadelphia Police officers were attacked and their vehicles were damaged during a series of illegal car meetups across the city over the weekend.

Philadelphia police say they’re investigating 11 meetups involving crowds from 50 to more than 200 vehicles engaging in illegal street racing, lighting bonfires, setting off fireworks, shooting a flamethrower, and even damaging police vehicles.

The meetups started at around 9:30 p.m. on Saturday and ended just after 4:30 a.m. on Sunday, spanning across almost every corner of the city from the Northeast to the Southwest.

Police said at least one officer is recovering after the chaotic incidents.

Some incidents caused more violence than others.

“It’s playing whack-a-mole, that’s the best way to describe it,” said Philadelphia police Deputy Commissioner Mike Cram. “We hit them at one location they move to another.”

Residents were very shaken by the incidents as they watched Philadelphia Police work to break up the chaos for hours.

An officer from the 39th district sustained minor injuries while responding to an assist call when his police vehicle was struck by another car that fled the scene of an incident on the 3300 block of Fox Street.

At 15th and Market Streets, countless tire marks can still be seen across the streets after police said more than 100 cars drifted into crowds of people, setting fires, and attacking several police officers just after 4:30 a.m. Multiple police vehicles were vandalized, leaving their windshield broken and their tires flattened.

“The incident outside of City Hall was aggressive. They physically went after our officers,” said Cram.

In total, five police vehicles were damaged in the incidents.

Video recorded by a member of the PHL17 team shows an incident at the intersection of Spring Garden Street and Pennsylvania Avenue in the Fairmount section of the city as drivers did doughnuts, revved their engines, and hung out of their cars, leaving clouds of smoke, as well as setting off fireworks.

This incident occurred around 3 a.m. when drivers and pedestrians gathered in a large circle blocking the entire intersection to and from the Ben Franklin Parkway disturbing nearby apartment buildings and residential areas, and incident bystanders who happened to be walking or driving in the area at the time.

A large police presence was seen after most of the drivers had left the area.

Police say around 50 cars were involved in an incident on the 7400 block of Bustleton Avenue at around 9:30 p.m. Officers issued 9 citations to drivers and 15 citations to spectators.

One driver attempted to evade police by driving directly at officers before colliding with an innocent civilian vehicle in the process. According to police, the driver has been identified and a warrant has been issued for their arrest.

Just after 11:45 p.m., over 100 vehicles were seen drifting and driving recklessly near 20th and Pattison Avenue. According to police, two people were arrested after fleeing from police and crashing into a pole.

At around 4:00 a.m., a group of more than 200 cars were seen drag racing and drifting near Island and Bartram Avenues. According to police, several officers were attacked and a police vehicle was damaged, but the crowd dispersed when additional officers arrived.

“I’m amazed at these people who are in these car meetups are literally standing in the middle of these cars doing doughnuts,” said Drew Murray, of Center City. “It’s extremely dangerous for them and it’s dangerous for people walking down the street.”

Murray, who is the vice president of the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, said he anticipates he will have to field multiple calls from frustrated neighbors after a meetup near 23rd and Spring Garden Streets, according to the Inquirer.

Police say they believe these incidents were in retaliation to the increased enforcement against the meetups over the past several months.

This comes after police created a specific mobile unit to help break up illegal car meetups and ATVs.

PHL17’s Alyssa Cristelli spoke with a man who said he was part of the incident near 15th and Market Streets. He shared this video of the incident.

The man described the incident as fun and said their motto is to “put the guns down and pick the bikes up.”

“Not only are they getting hit with a $2,500 fine, by the way, now we’re turning your car over. Confiscating your car as well,” said Cram.

Police say they will not condone this behavior.

“When you hear that banging on the door, it will be us. We’re coming with search warrants and arrest warrants. Don’t think we’re gonna allow this to happen in our city, we’re not,” said Deputy Commissioner Francis Healy, chief of staff at the Philadelphia Police Department.

As police continue to search through video, anyone with video or information of their own about the incidents is asked to contact police at 215-686-TIPS.

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