Another instance of sudden jihad syndrome: A Philadelphia police officer, Jessie Hartnett, is lucky to be alive after being shot at 13 times as he sat in his patrol car at an intersection. The assailant, Edward Archer, is in custody and has confessed. Archer said he did it in the name of Islam and has pledged loyalty to ISIS. Archer’s brother told a local reporter that Archer had made the hajj.
Brother: Suspect had made pilgrimage to Mecca, was upset over police treatment of African-American men. @FOX29philly 10p
— Sabina Kuriakose (@SabinaKuriakose) January 9, 2016
Philadelphia’s mayor, however, wanted to make something clear:
After police confirmed that the suspect who attempted to “execute” a Philadelphia police officer on Thursday night claimed to have done so in the name of Islam, Mayor Jim Kenney told reporters on Friday that the attack is not connected to Islam in any way.
“In no way, shape or form does anyone in this room believe that Islam or the teachings of Islam have anything to do with what you’ve seen on that screen,” Kenney said. “That is abhorrent. It’s just terrible, and it does not represent the religion in any way, shape or form or any of its teachings.”
“This is a criminal with a stolen gun who tried to kill one of our officers,” he added. “[It] has nothing to do with being a Muslim or following the Islamic faith.”
Mayor Kenney claimed instead that it has something to do with “too many guns on the street.” Turns out the gun was a police officer’s, stolen from his home two years earlier. Not from a gun show or the internet. Oops.
Archer fired 13 shots at Officer Hartnett at point-blank range and only hit him three times. I guess Hartnett is lucky that Archer spent a lot more time reading the Koran than practicing his marksmanship.