PHILADELPHIA — Two carjackers who fled after ramming a stolen SUV into a family selling fruit for their church, killing three young siblings, were still on the run Saturday as the reward for their capture topped $100,000.
The children’s 34-year-old mother, Keisha Williams, remained in critical condition at Temple University Hospital. Her slain children were identified as 15-year-old Keiearra Williams, 10-year-old Thomas Reed and 7-year-old Terrence Moore.
The two suspects fled on foot after crashing the stolen car Friday morning at a North Philadelphia intersection.
They had first carjacked a real estate agent at gunpoint and later forced her into the back seat of her SUV, authorities said.
The 45-year-old agent was also hospitalized afterward, as was a 65-year-old woman helping the family with the fruit stand.
Sakina Brown, granddaughter of the 65-year-old victim, told The Philadelphia Inquirer that her grandmother had seen the vehicle coming and tried unsuccessfully to get out of the away. She suffered a broken ankle and bruised sternum when she was struck.
The group held the fundraiser every week to raise money for a church effort to turn the corner lot into a playground, Brown said.
Eyewitnesses who rushed to help the injured described a gruesome scene. One woman rushed to the boys, finding one with only a light pulse and the other with none.
The 10-year-old died at the scene. The other two were pronounced dead at hospitals.
The reward for the suspects’ arrest has reached $110,000, thanks to contributions from the city and the Fraternal Order of Police.
Police have also asked nearby businesses for surveillance videos, and were getting tips from the public.
“There are no words to describe how I feel right now,” said police Commissioner Charles Ramsey, “but we do need to find these two guys.”
Police believe the suspects may have blown a tire as they turned a corner at high speed.
The car ended up in a wooded area, its front end smashed against a stand of trees, about a mile from the site of the carjacking.
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