Man Escaped after Allegedly Shooting Another Man in Face in Norristown

Police have released the story behind the Oct. 20 shooting outside of the Riverside Apartments on Schuylkill Avenue in Norristown that left one man shot in the face, according to a police report.

Law enforcement from Norristown and Lower Providence responded to help, say police.

After a call about shots fired, Norristown police went to the Riverside Apartments at the 100 block of Schuylkill Avenue around 2:48 a.m. according to a Norristown police report. The caller said that there was a black car and a man laying by the car in the parking lot; the caller also told police that the car was leaving the parking lot that was on the far west, say police.

A Norristown officer arrived in an unmarked car and saw that a dark-colored car was “fleeing” the lot that the caller had referenced; in doing so, the car struck the officer’s car according to the report. The dark car drove out of the officer’s sight, and the officer found the man who was lying on the ground, who did not respond, say police.

Another Norristown officer arrived and found the dark-colored car in a parking lot between two of the apartment buildings, still running, say police. The driver had left. As the dark vehicle drove away it had struck two more cars, according to the report.

One of the officers contacted a Riverside Apartment security guard, who told the officer that he saw the dark-colored car hit the two cars, which were parked say police. The guard told police that he saw an African-American man who looked to be about 25-30 years old running south towards the direction of the river, according to the report. 

Police saw that blood came from the victim’s mouth and what seemed to be one gun shot on the lower part of his left eyelid; medics arrived and took the victim to a hospital for treatment, according to he report.

A Lower Providence police department officer and K-9 arrived to help track the suspect in the location where he had fled, according to the report. The K-9 was able to track the scent for some time; it is possible that the suspect may have tried to make his way onto a small island off of the bank, say police.

Police requested assistance from helicopters and other law enforcement to try to use thermal imaging to find the suspect should he still be in the woods or river, but the helicopters could not be reached, according to the report.

The damaged, dark-colored vehicle was towed for evidence, per the report. According to police, the victim was in stable and critical condition as of Monday.