‘ALL THE BAD GUYS HAVE GUNS’
Upper Darby presses manhunt for 2 men wanted in shooting
Upper Darby Police Superintendent Mike Chitwood points to screen as he plays surveillance video from township restaurant where a shooting occurred over the weekend. Two suspects are being sought.
UPPER DARBY » Surveillance footage released Tuesday morning shows the seconds leading up to two shootings at an Upper Darby restaurant late Friday night that injured two people.
Upper Darby Police Superintendent Michael Chitwood called the recorded act of Oscar J. Seth-Murray III, 27, allegedly robbing and shooting the victim in the neck at a Chinese eating establishment in the 700 block of Garrett Road as a “sadistic, heinous” crime. That shooting was then quickly followed up with someone in the restaurant going outside and shooting at Seth-Murray.
The incident left a perplexed Upper Darby top cop pondering why “all the bad guys have guns.”
According to Chitwood, Seth-Murray entered the restaurant at approximately 11:50 p.m. In the footage released there were a number of people in the restaurant, over a dozen in total, said Chitwood, including the eventual 16- and 23-yearold victims. In other video of the incident reviewed by police but not shown publicly, Chitwood said on Monday it looks like a nod was given between Seth-Murray and the 23-year-old before the former left the restaurant.
Moments later, SethMurray returns and the video shows him approaching the 23-year-old victim who is just out of frame of the video and is shown to be forcefully emptying out the pockets of the victim. The interaction revs up when Seth-Murray pulls out a gun, points it at the man and drags him by his belt to the front door of the restaurant. The victim does not appear to be fighting back after the gun is drawn and pointed at him and the other customers. In the doorway of the building Seth-Murray fires a single shot into the neck of the victim, who then falls onto the sidewalk outside. The bullet exits the victim through his back and ends up in the thigh of a 16–year-old customer in the store. Seconds later another man, identified as Timothy Dwayne Price Jr., is seen running outside and waits a moment to see if the coast is clear before firing off two shots of his own at Seth-Murray, who reportedly took off in a white sedan owned by his girlfriend. Those rounds did not hit anything and no one was injured, according to Chitwood.
No formal connection has been made between SethMurray and the 23-year-old, but that victim and Price were seen arriving at the restaurant together in a black SUV. The innocent juvenile caught in the ruckus was an innocent bystander. He was taken to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and was eventually released, the bullet still in him, according to Chitwood. The 23-year-old was taken to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center and may have been paralyzed below the waist due to the shooting.
“It’s a sadistic, heinous, cold-blooded, calculated shooting,” said Chitwood Tuesday morning. “Period, that’s what it is. That’s the reality of what we’re starting to see every day in our country.”
When asked it if seems Seth-Murray intended to kill his victim Chitwood said it appears to him he did.
“You shoot a guy in the neck, give me a break,” he said.
With each suspect charged for carrying a firearm without a license the question continues to be asked how they were able to get them.
“How do you keep the guns out of the baddies’ hands? I don’t know the answer to that and I’ve been doing this a long time,” said Chitwood. “That’s the question, that’s the big question.” He added that getting a gun is easier than getting a cheesesteak.
Recently, Upper Darby police have arrested someone with a .30-caliber semiautomatic clip and on Monday a homeless person was arrested for having a fully loaded, stolen .44-caliber on the street with him.
Warrants have been issued for Seth-Murray and Price’s arrest for a combined 13 charges. Price is charged with one count each of firearms not to be carried without a license and recklessly endangering another person. Seth-Murray is charged with criminal attempt murder of the first degree, four varying counts of aggravated assault, four weapons charges and two counts of recklessly endangering another person. Upper Darby police have tried to locate the suspects at township addresses they were known to be at, but they were not there. Their information has been shared with the FBI’s National Crime Information Center
A warrant has not been issued for Seth-Murray’s girlfriend, who police said owns the car.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of the two suspects are asked to call Upper Darby detectives at 610-734-7693.