Two brothers, aged 10 and 14, have handed themselves in after Philadelphia Police appealed for information about a group of teenagers who beat a 73-year-old man to death with a traffic cone.
Horrific footage shows the gang of seven teens chasing James Lambert Jr. down the street before swinging a cone at the back of his head.
The callous group even filmed themselves carrying out the brutal attack in the early hours of June 24, on Cecil B. Moore Avenue in Philadelphia.
Two boys have now turned themselves into the homicide department yesterday, but no formal charges have yet been filed.
Police have not released their identities, and they are still appealing for any information on the remaining five members of the gang.
Philadelphia DA Larry Krasner said that it was ‘very likely’ that the youths involved would be charged with murder.
He told CBS: ‘This is a very very active investigation, things are happening hour by hour.’
In the footage Lambert can be seen falling over onto the sidewalk after being hit in the back of the head with the traffic cone.
James Lambert Jr. attempted to escape the teenagers, but a girl pics up the cone and appears to bash it over his head as the teens chase after the desperate man. Two brothers, 10 and 14, have now handed themselves into Philadelphia Police in relation to the violent attack
The video captures the moment the seven teens chase Lambert, 73, of Philadelphia, at around 3am last month. One of the teens has a traffic cone in his hand as he approaches their alleged victim
Police said Lambert (pictured) suffered several injuries to the head and was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead
He is then surrounded by the group and one of the girls picks up the cone again and hurls it at him before he attempts to get to his feet.
The teens then chase him off camera, with the girl grabbing the cone for a third time and hitting him with it as they vanish from sight.
Police said Lambert suffered several injuries to the head and was transported to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Lambert’s family said that they were heartbroken by his death and in complete disbelief that a group of kids were allegedly behind this.
Tania Stephens, Lambert’s niece, told : ‘I just don’t understand what’s going on in our city.
‘He’s walked that path for 60, 70 years of his life, and for his life to be snuffed out like that, is just unbelievable.’
‘I don’t understand how children that age, how are you out at 2am in the morning committing crime.
‘Where were the parents, those cones are heavy and to pick it up with such force and to throw it not once but twice at a senior citizens head and then laugh about it.’
Lambert’s sister, Elsie Stephens has issued a heartfelt plea for the other teens involved to turn themselves in.
She told CBS: ‘Let them turn themselves in, turn yourself in how can you let us suffer like this. You took him away from us.’
One teen strikes Lambert on the back of his head, sending both Lambert and the cone falling onto the side walk during the brutal June 24 attack. Footage shows their victim struggling to get to his feet and away from his alleged attackers
Following the first attack with the traffic cone, a girl picked up the makeshift weapon for a second time and hurls at the Lambert, who was lying on the ground
Police are offering a $20,000 reward for information on the seven teens, but will not confirm the charges they will face
Police believe the teens recorded the assault on one of their cell phones, and even laughed as they recreated the fatal attack while walking down the street
A $20,000 reward has been offered for information that leads to an arrest and conviction of each suspect.
The Philadelphia Police Department is still searching for five other offenders, who they describe as two black males and three black females in their early to mid-teens.
Along with video of the incident, police also shared additional clips of the young suspects, four boys and three girls, who they believed to be between the ages of 13 and 17.
One of the male suspects had a blonde patch on his hair, while another one rode his scooter during the entire incident.
Another one of the alleged assailants appeared to be stumbling about, appearing to recreate the moment Lambert fell to the ground during the assault.
Officials said that one of the suspects also appeared to be filming the incident on their phone, but police have yet to find any video of the attack on social media.
Police did not specify what charges the teens would face, and said the final decision would be on the district attorney’s office.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Philadelphia Police Department Homicide Unit at 215-686-3334/3335.
The teenagers chased after their victim who disappeared off camera. He was rushed to hospital but died several days later after suffering from head injuries’
Philadelphia has seen a drastic rise in violence, with overall crime up more than 25 percent so far this year compared to the same time in 2021.
While homicides and rapes have seen a notable drop this year, the number of assaults has only dipped by 1.47 percent, from 2,522 incidents last year to 2,485 so far this year.
Meanwhile, the number of shooting victims has gone up 5.51 percent, with police reporting 1,168 cases so far this year, up from 1,107 last year.
Robberies have seen the greatest uptick, with 1,427 cases reported this year, up 21.55 percent from the 1,174 reported last year.
Lambert’s death came just four days before Anthony Nelson, 47, of Philadelphia, allegedly shot and killed 21-year-old Jailene Holton at the Philly Bar and Restaurant on June 28.
Nelson is accused of opening fire after he was kicked out of the venue when he was told that he would be unable to use a pool table because a league was playing.
After getting into a tussle with a bouncer, the group of three men were forced to leave, after which one member went to get a gun from their car.
Jailene Holton, 21, of Philadelphia, was shot while standing in the back of the Philly Bar and Grill on June 28. She was out for a night on the town with her friends
Anthony Nelson, 47, was arrested in Harrah’s Casino, Atlantic City in connection with the shooting death of Jailene Holton, 21, of Philadelphia
Philadelphia Police are also currently investigation gunfire that ran out during the city’s Fourth of July fireworks festival, which sent hundreds running for their lives
Holton had been standing at the back of the bar when she was struck in the head by a bullet, after more than a dozen shots were fired from less than 200 feet away.
Philadelphia Police are also currently investigating gunfire that ran out during the city’s Fourth of July fireworks festival, which struck and injured two officers working at the event.
Officers Sergio Diggs, 36, and Deputy John Foster, 44, were transported to Jefferson Hospital in stable condition, and were released early Tuesday morning.
They suffered minor injuries from the shooting, with Foster, assigned to the Montgomery County Bomb Squad, shot in the shoulder, and Diggs, a Highway Patrol Officer, suffering from a graze wound to the head.
Police are still unsure if the shootings were an intentional attack on the city’s officers, or if they were a result of celebratory bullets ricocheting and สล็อตฝากถอน true wallet ไม่มี ขั้นต่ำ, striking the men by accident.
Like in the attack with Lambert, Philadelphia police are offering a $20,00 reward for information leading to the arrest of a suspect.