Eric Lewis was arraigned Sunday morning on 76 charges tied to a Saturday shooting that killed Philadelphia police Officer Shane Seiber and wounded Seiber’s partner, according to court records. Lewis, 35, was ordered held without bail. His next court date is scheduled for Oct. 26.
The charges include murder, homicide of a law enforcement officer, attempted murder, 10 counts of attempted homicide of a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault and terroristic threats.
Police said the officers responded at about 12:20 a.m. Saturday to a report of a man with a gun. They encountered an armed man on a porch and came under what authorities described as significant gunfire. A wounded officer was shot 12 times and was initially in critical condition; police later described his condition as stable.
Other officers and a SWAT team arrived and found both officers wounded. Further gunfire led authorities to declare a barricade situation before Lewis was taken into custody, according to the source report. Police said he had two handguns and a shotgun. One handgun belonged to the wounded officer. District Attorney Larry Krasner did not say at a Saturday news conference whether Lewis fired that weapon or how he obtained the other firearms.
Seiber, 40, served 10 years with the Philadelphia Police Department and was an Air Force veteran. He is survived by his wife and two children. Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel said Seiber’s family was with him before he died.
Lewis is accused of the crimes; the charges have not been adjudicated. The source report also cites Pennsylvania court records showing past convictions, including theft and receiving stolen property in 2012, gun-related offenses and simple assault in 2013, and disorderly conduct in 2018.
