A broad daylight shooting near Boston’s Prudential Center left a man dead and horrified the Back Bay Tuesday morning.
According to Boston police, the shooting happened just before 11 a.m. near the upscale Colonnade Hotel, near the corner of Huntington Avenue and West Newton Street. Boston Police Commissioner William Gross said the victim, who was not identified but believed to be in his thirties, was shot several times and died after he was transported to a hospital. A suspect was arrested shortly after the shooting, on Ring Road, after witnesses called 911.
Phillip Foy, 34, of Pawtucket, Rhode Island is facing charges of murder, armed carjacking and unlawful possession of a firearm, police said.
The brazen shooting happened amidst a bustling pedestrian area in the Back Bay, terrifying onlookers. Witness Kara Deyermenjian told Metro she was walking along Huntington Avenue when she saw police running by, guns drawn.
“I’m a little shaken up. It was scary,” said Deyermenjian, 31, who said she saw cops cuffing a man with long dreadlocks.
“Right in front of Star Market, they had him in custody. He was a tall guy, with dreads down to his waist,” she said.
Deyermenjian said the man did not say anything as officers put him in a police car.
“He was looking down, upset.”
Another witness told her he saw the man throw a gun and some money onto the street, and attempt to flee in a cab. But police stopped him before he could get away. A Metro photographer at the scene saw a gun, a knife, an ammo clip, sneakers, cash and a necklace lying next to numbered evidence markers in the street.
Police blocked off the street to investigate the crime scene, snarling traffic in the area. Investigators were expected to remain at the crime scene into the Tuesday evening commute, so travelers were asked to avoid the area. The Orange Line also experienced delays due to the related police activity at Back Bay, according to the MBTA.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh pointed to the rarity of daytime shootings in Boston, calling it “horrible and sad.” Suffolk County District Attorney Rachael Rollins commended bystanders’ swift reaction to the shooting. “We had good Samaritans that engaged in heroic behavior, [and] got the police involved.”
Person Shot In Boston’s Back Bay https://t.co/Lq0h2EsLnw pic.twitter.com/MOTkv7DeOa
— Boston Informer (@boston_informer) June 4, 2019
#BREAKING Boston Police confirm victim who was shot in the Back Bay suffered life-threatening injuries. Large scene blocked off outside the Colonnade Hotel pic.twitter.com/iOvsoRClUZ
— WBZ | CBS Boston News (@wbz) June 4, 2019
