June 19, 2024
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
Philadelphia police say officer Paul Moore, 32, shot a man who had been riding a dirt bike after the biker pulled a gun during a traffic stop in Fairhill. Moore is on administrative leave pending an investigation into the shooting.
Police have identified the officer who shot a man seen riding a dirt bike in North Philadelphia on Saturday.
Officer Paul Moore, 32, shot the man after police said he attempted to draw a gun as officers confiscated his dirt bike. The rider, 31, whose name has not been released, was taken to Temple University Hospital for treatment. He arrived in critical condition and has improved to stable condition.
Moore, a six-year veteran of the police department, and other officers had been responding to a police helicopter tip about a dirt bike rider "recklessly weaving" through traffic just after 3 p.m., police said. They had been tailing the rider before he pulled into a gated area at Sixth and Somerset streets in Fairhill.
As another officer explained to the rider that his dirt bike was being confiscated because they are illegal to operate on city streets, police said "the suspect became agitated and reached for a concealed weapon."
Moore, who was behind the suspect, saw him reaching for the firearm and unsuccessfully attempted to disarm him, police said. He then fired multiple shots at the man, striking him, police said. Investigators also said they recovered the dirt bike rider's gun at the scene.
Moore, who is assigned to the 22nd District, has been placed on administrative duty while Internal Affairs and the Officer-Involved Shooting Unit conduct an investigation.
Police previously said the officers involved in the incident were part of the ATV enforcement unit, a group cracking down on ATV and dirt bike riding in the city, an issue Mayor Cherelle Parker has made it a priority. So far this year, police have confiscated 180 dirt bikes and ATVs, more than the total seized last year.
