Yeah, wild. People standing around totally freak out (obviously), and before the guy can even hit the gas, the crowd jumps in, drags him out, and, well, let’s just say they didn’t wait for the cops to show up. “Street justice” happened, Philly-style.
Picture this: a mom dashes into a Philly pizza joint, probably just trying to grab dinner real quick, and when she comes out? Boom, total nightmare. Some dude, Eric Hood, 54 years old, is driving off in her car… with her three kids still inside. I mean, heart attack city. According to what the cops told BuzzFeed News, she’d parked outside this spot in Strawberry Mansion, North Philly, it’s like 9:15 at night, and then chaos just erupts.
She left her kids chilling in the backseat of her gray Hyundai, engine still running, while she popped inside to have a word with the dad of two of them. Outta nowhere, police say this guy Hood jumps in and takes off with the car, kids still buckled up in the back.
Didn’t get far, though. Dude barely made it half a block before hitting traffic and getting stuck. NBC Philly said, “Suddenly, a 54-year-old man, later identified by police as Eric Hood, jumped into her car and sped off with the children, who are between 7 months and 5 years old, strapped inside, according to investigators.” Wild, right?
Cops Involved
Cops told The Philadelphia Inquirer that Hood swiped the Hyundai, which set the couple sprinting after their car, basically living out a real-life action movie. Traffic was a nightmare, lucky for them, so mom and dad managed to catch up, drag Hood right out of the driver’s seat.
Then things got wild. A big crowd jumped in, tackled the guy, and roughed him up, especially after he took a swing at the dad. Chief Inspector Scott Small told NBC Philadelphia that some guys from the neighborhood jumped in to help out the boyfriend, and, well, it turned into a full-on brawl.
Hood shook loose from the dad and bolted across 29th Street. That’s when a bunch of people swarmed him, pinned him down, and didn’t hold back kicking, punching, the works. By the time the cops showed up, Hood wasn’t even moving.
Cops showed up after Hood got jumped. Honestly, the scene was a mess. They found him out cold, barely hanging on, and the damage was just… yeah, brutal. Paramedics tried to save him, rushed him straight to Temple University Hospital, but nope, they couldn’t pull him back.
He was already too far gone. Meanwhile, his parents? They stuck around, standing there until the detectives finally showed up and brought them in for questioning. The whole thing was just heartbreaking.
Turns out, Eric Hood was no stranger to cops; dude had racked up 24 arrests. Yeah, twenty-four. ABC News even laid it out: “Hood had a lengthy arrest record with 24 arrests.
The mother of the kids left in the vehicle could also face charges for leaving them in a running car.” Oh, and get this, the police said the parents played nice, answered a bunch of questions, and then got sent on their way.
Locals say:
Honestly, sounds like a bunch of locals were totally on board with that whole “street justice” thing. Just look at what they said:
- Kabreeze Sheed, who’s been living in Philly forever, just shook his head. “Man, it’s messed up, but I get it. Honestly, with the way things go down around here, who wouldn’t chase after someone messing with their kid? Kids get snatched up, just gone like, poof, never see them again. Or worse. You can’t even imagine the stuff that could happen.”
- Jason Whitfield jumped in, looking like he’d seen it all. “Look, nowadays? You don’t just sit back and hope for the best. Someone does something messed up, they gotta deal with the fallout. That’s just the way it goes. You do dirt, you pay for it.”
- Some lady nearby, couldn’t catch her name, chimed in, too, waving her hand like she was swatting a fly. “This neighborhood? Full of weirdos. Seriously, blink and someone’s in your car, peeling off down the block. Gotta stay sharp out here.”
Man, those kids got crazy lucky, could’ve been a total disaster. Seriously, parents, don’t ever leave your little ones alone in a running car. Not even for a quick second. Bad stuff can go down in the blink of an eye. Just thinking about what might’ve happened if someone hadn’t stopped that guy? Gives me chills, honestly.
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