Police searched Wednesday for at least two people they believe were behind a shooting outside a Philadelphia high school that killed one 14-year-old and wounded four other teenagers after a football scrimmage.
Nicholas Elizalde, of suburban Havertown, was killed in the ambush as he and the other teens, all football players, walked away from an athletic field at Roxborough High School shortly after 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, authorities said. Three of the wounded players were taken to hospitals with gunshot wounds.
A motive for the shooting was not known, but police said they would pull images from surveillance cameras in the area and examine social media and other sources to see whether the violence might have stemmed from events earlier in the day.
The shooting came just after Philadelphia surpassed 400 homicides for the year, only slightly behind the pace of last year's toll, which ended up being the highest in at least six decades. And it happened hours after Mayor Jim Kenney, a Democrat, signed an order banning guns and deadly weapons from the city’s indoor and outdoor recreation spaces, including parks, basketball courts and pools.
Besides Elizalde, the other victims were a 17-year-old who was shot in the arm and leg, a 14-year-old shot in the thigh, a 15-year-old shot in the leg, and a 14-year-old who was treated at the scene for a graze to the ankle. The three teens taken to the hospital were listed as stable Wednesday morning.
Alex Torres, whose 14-year-old brother was injured in the shooting, told WPVI-TV that his stepmother called to tell him about the shooting and that he rushed to the school.
“My little brother is 14, and just hearing he was shot is the worst feeling in the world,” Torres said, adding that his brother likes to play videogames and stays indoors a lot. “He’s a good kid, so I don’t understand why this happened to him.”
A spokesperson for the Philadelphia school district confirmed that Elizalde attended W.B. Saul High School, an agricultural charter school that partners with Roxborough for some of its athletics, including football. All the victims were members of the Roxborough football team, police said.
All three schools involved in the scrimmages — Roxborough, Northeast High School and Boys Latin Charter School — opened for classes on schedule Wednesday morning.
Several players for the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles tweeted about the shooting Tuesday night, offering prayers for the families and lamenting that gun violence could shatter the safe space kids feel in sports.
“It must stop! for these kids, their families and their teammates,” Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson tweeted. “Sports are supposed to be a safe haven.”
The Eagles launched a campaign called “End Philly Gun Violence” in January that included a partnership with police to host a gun buyback at Lincoln Financial Field in June in exchange for gift cards funded by the Eagles organization.
