October 30, 2024
Thom Carroll/For PhillyVoice
Spencer Majett, 29, was shot by Philadelphia Police on Tuesday night in Kensington, investigators say. Majett was wanted for allegedly shooting to death Felicity Vanatta, 23, in Kensington earlier this month.
A man wanted for a fatal shooting earlier this month was shot by Philadelphia police in Kensington on Tuesday.
Police sought to arrest Spencer Majett, 29, after they spotted him at 5:30 p.m. near Reach Street and Allegheny Avenue in Kensington, 6ABC reported. Majett fled and was chased into an alley between the 3100 blocks of Custer and Reach streets.
Majett was shot in the shoulder and taken to Temple University Hospital, and was in "critical but stable" condition, Deputy Police Commissioner Frank Vanore said. The Inquirer reported that Majett fired at least one shot from a .40 caliber gun at the officers who were chasing him.
Majett is accused of killing Felicity Vanatta, 23, of Pennsgrove, New Jersey, following an argument outside the Steak N Beer deli and liquor store on the 2700 block of Kensington Avenue on Oct. 8. As Majett turned away from the argument, he allegedly fired a shot that struck Vanatta, a bystander who was nearly a half-block from the store. Police identified Majett as the alleged shooter from surveillance video obtained from the store and other nearby businesses.
Police said they will look at body camera and surveillance footage as they investigate Tuesday's shooting. A firearm was recovered at the scene.
Vanore told 6ABC that Majett's arrest was "great police work."
"They're just out, they see somebody they recognize," Vanore said. "They do what they're supposed to do: try to stop them. He runs and they affected their arrest and unfortunately, they had to use force to do that."
