A man was shot dead Monday after allegedly forcing his way overnight into the home of a Jewish family in the Rhawnhurst neighborhood of Philadelphia, according to a report by The Yeshiva World.
Police said the man, believed to be in his 40s, broke into the family’s home on Griffith Street at about 1:30 a.m. Monday. Authorities said he entered the daughter’s bedroom, prompting a resident on the first floor of the building to investigate after hearing noises and retrieve a handgun.
Police said the resident then encountered the intruder holding a stick. According to Philadelphia’s local ABC affiliate, the neighbor ordered the suspect to drop the stick, but he refused. The neighbor then allegedly shot him once in the chest.
The suspect was pronounced dead at a hospital. Investigators said the home’s front door had been forced open and that the suspect’s vehicle was parked outside the residence.
According to reports by the Haredi news site The Yeshiva World, an Orthodox Jewish woman and her two children were inside the home at the time. The woman, who works as a babysitter for many infants in the Orthodox community, began screaming after the intruder entered the house. A neighbor who heard her cries arrived at the scene, forced open the door with a crowbar and fatally shot the intruder.
No injuries were reported among the family members or others who were inside the home. The identity of the suspect has not yet been released.
Authorities are treating the case as a homicide investigation — a standard procedure in any fatal shooting, as they work to determine the full circumstances surrounding the break-in and shooting.