Philadelphia police are on the hunt for three suspects in connection to the fatal shooting at a Chipotle restaurant near Temple University on Monday night. The 16-year-old victim, Khyon Smith-Tate, was found dead with a gunshot wound to his chest while sitting alone in the restroom.
According to investigators, Smith-Tate had asked for the key to use the bathroom and was accompanied by another person at the time of the shooting. Surveillance footage shows him entering the bathroom with this individual, who remains unidentified.
Police are seeking three suspects, all 16- or 17-year-olds, who match different descriptions. The first suspect is described as having dreadlocks and wearing a black coat, pink hooded sweatshirt, black pants, and carrying a red backpack. The second suspect matches the description of wearing a black coat, jeans, sneakers, and carrying a black backpack. The third suspect also has dreadlocks and was seen wearing a black coat, blue hooded sweatshirt, black pants, and carrying a dark-colored backpack.
The shooting occurred during a busy dinner rush at the restaurant on Montgomery Avenue, which is not directly affiliated with Temple University but sits across the street from its TECH Center campus. Police have spoken to customers and employees who were present at the time of the incident.
Chipotle has issued a statement saying it is cooperating fully with the investigation and expressing its commitment to employee safety and security. The restaurant remains closed, and the company has made arrangements for on-site counseling services for employees.
Temple University's president and vice president have also released a statement condemning gun violence and expressing their condolences to Smith-Tate's family and loved ones.
According to investigators, Smith-Tate had asked for the key to use the bathroom and was accompanied by another person at the time of the shooting. Surveillance footage shows him entering the bathroom with this individual, who remains unidentified.
Police are seeking three suspects, all 16- or 17-year-olds, who match different descriptions. The first suspect is described as having dreadlocks and wearing a black coat, pink hooded sweatshirt, black pants, and carrying a red backpack. The second suspect matches the description of wearing a black coat, jeans, sneakers, and carrying a black backpack. The third suspect also has dreadlocks and was seen wearing a black coat, blue hooded sweatshirt, black pants, and carrying a dark-colored backpack.
The shooting occurred during a busy dinner rush at the restaurant on Montgomery Avenue, which is not directly affiliated with Temple University but sits across the street from its TECH Center campus. Police have spoken to customers and employees who were present at the time of the incident.
Chipotle has issued a statement saying it is cooperating fully with the investigation and expressing its commitment to employee safety and security. The restaurant remains closed, and the company has made arrangements for on-site counseling services for employees.
Temple University's president and vice president have also released a statement condemning gun violence and expressing their condolences to Smith-Tate's family and loved ones.
this is just another example of how messed up our world is right now, where a teenager can just walk into a restaurant alone and get shot in the bathroom 
like what even is the point of that? it's not like he was even doing anything wrong or threatening anyone. and these three suspects are all 16-17 years old, which is just wild because that's when you're supposed to be learning how to live your life, not becoming a statistic in some senseless shooting 
. i mean, what's the likelihood of someone walking into the bathroom and getting shot during a busy dinner rush? it's crazy.
just checked the Philly PD's Twitter account, and apparently 1 in 5 teenagers (16-19) are victims of gun violence in the US 
stats show most gun violence incidents occur between 6-10 pm 
, so yeah, it's no wonder this happened when there were people around. Also, did you see the pics of the suspects? 
they all seem like your average 16-year-old lol 
what's even more concerning is that the victim was sitting alone in a bathroom 
anyway, here are some stats on gun violence and its impact: in 2020, there were over 40k deaths from gun violence in the US 
. let's just say it's time for us to reevaluate our priorities 
here's a chart comparing gun violence incidents by day of the week 
let's talk about school safety and how we can prevent these incidents from happening in the first place 
. I mean, who needs a Chipotle run after a long day, right? 
Anyway, hope the police catch these three teens ASAP and maybe they can teach them about gun safety in school instead of on the streets 
anyway, i'm all for more security measures and stuff, but it's crazy that these 3 teens were able to get away so easily... 
just when u think everythin is good in philly, somethin tragic happens...idk how it happened but hopefully the police find these guys soon 
i feel bad for smtht that was supposed to be a chill night out at chipotle...what if they had taken their order and gone? maybe somethin woulda stopped this whole thing 
anyway, prayers 4 Khyon's family 
️ while sitting alone 
... no one should have to go through that 
maybe someone saw something suspicious but nobody wanted to rat out their friends 
... now the police are looking for these three suspects 
and hopefully they catch them ASAP 
... but think about Khyon's family and how they're feeling right now 
... we need more gun control laws in this country 
... it's just not fair to these young people 
.
. But can we please, for the love of all things good, work together to prevent this kind of thing from happening again? 
. A kid who was just trying to use the bathroom, it's like something out of a movie or a nightmare. It's not right that these young lives are being lost due to a shooting. I'm really worried about the impact this will have on our youth and how we can prevent such tragedies from happening in the future 
. I'm all for holding people accountable, but let's not forget that guns are just tools, it's the intentions behind them that matter 
. We should be focusing on prevention and education rather than punishment alone 
.
. I hope that this incident will spark some real change and conversations about how we can create safer spaces for everyone 
I mean I'm tryna stay neutral but it's hard not 2 think about the what ifs... I heard from a friend who works at that Chipotle that it was super busy and there were tons of people around... why did it happen? 
. And have you seen the pics of the suspects' outfits? Dreadlocks and black coats everywhere... like they're trying to send us some kinda message or somethin 
No way. This is just insane. The fact that they're still at large is just infuriating. Can't the cops catch them already?! 
. The fact that Chipotle is offering counseling services on-site for employees is a good start, but we need more systemic changes