Police hunt for man who they believe killed girlfriend’s former partner in ‘love triangle’ shooting

A man in Philadelphia shot and killed his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend, according to Philadelphia police.

“At this time we believe this may be some sort of love triangle,” Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said in a statement.

Police were called to North 5th Street near Greenwood Avenue around 1 am on May 30, 2025 to respond to a report of gunfire in the area, NBC 10 Philadelphia reports.

When they arrived, police found blood on the sidewalk and evidence that at least three shots had been fired, but they did not find a victim.

A short time later, police learned that a 26-year-old man was checked into St Christopher’s Hospital for Children suffering from gunshot wounds to his abdomen and leg. Doctors rushed the man into surgery but he died around 2:30 am.

Small said that investigators “know who we are looking for,” and noted that the suspect is 24-years-old.

“It appears that the 24-year-old who committed this shooting is the new boyfriend and he shot the former boyfriend who is 26 years of age,” Small said. “We are being told who the shooter is. We have his name, we don’t have his last known address, but we know who we’re looking for. So we’re pretty comfortable he will be taken into custody shortly,”

According to police, witnesses they spoke to saw the shooting, and they believe there are surveillance cameras in the area that may have captured evidence of the incident.

Police are still searching for the shooter, but Small said he is confident that an arrest in the killing will be made. At this point it’s unclear what events led to the shooting.

“We are pretty confident that he will be taken into custody,” Small said.

This year, 92 people have been killed in Philadelphia, according to police data. That number is down by 13 percent year over year and is the lowest year-to-date total number of killings in a decade.

The names of the individuals involved have not been publicly released. The Independent has requested further information from the Philadelphia Police Department.