The man accused in a mass Philadelphia killing on Monday night had acted bizarrely in the days before the attack, wearing a bulletproof vest, writing a will and making “disturbing” social media posts, city officials said Wednesday. Kimbrady Carriker, 40, was charged with five counts of murder and an array of other charges after allegedly opening fire with an AR-15-style weapon on a residential street in a random attack, killing five and injuring others, reports the Washington Post. The city, and the southwest neighborhood of Kingsessing, remained shaken after the mass killing, in which five unrelated men from 15 to 59 years old died. Carriker’s motive remained under investigation, as did how he obtained his weapon, which he did not legally possess.
People who knew Carriker said he became “more and more agitated over the last couple of days,” said Assistant District Attorney Joanne Pescatore. It was around 8:30 p.m. Monday when Carriker — who police said had an AR-style rifle, a “ghost gun” handgun, a bulletproof vest and magazines — allegedly began firing randomly at people and cars on the street. Police apprehended Carriker after cornering him in an alley. He remained jailed Wednesday. Carriker did not know the victims, District Attorney Larry Krasner said at a news conference. He lives a block from the house where police said the first slain victim was found. The Philadelphia Inquirer said Carriker told police that he carried out the attack to help them combat the city’s gun violence crisis and that he believed a deity would send others to assist. He had made “disturbing” social media posts, said Philadelphia Sheriff Rochelle Bilal. Pescatore said, "If somebody had called or gotten some kind of help for this particular person, maybe this could’ve been avoided.”