Man dies after hours-long standoff on SEPTA bus; police investigating possible link to double homicide

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — A man who barricaded himself on a SEPTA Route 18 bus in Philadelphia’s Fox Chase neighborhood died Monday from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after an hours-long standoff with police, authorities said.

Police first responded around 5 a.m. to reports of an armed man who allegedly refused to get off the bus at the end of the ride. By 5 p.m., the standoff was over and the bus, which had remained the focus of the police response for more than 12 hours, was towed away from Oxford Avenue.

Family members identified the man as Lonnie Turner.

Julio Rosario owns an MMA academy across the street.

“I only heard one gunshot; it was a quick shot and that was the end of the situation,” Rosario said.

Investigators are also looking into Turner’s connection to a double homicide in the Cedarbrook neighborhood, nearly five miles away. Two women were found shot to death in a home in the 8300 block of Williams Avenue after a fire was reported about an hour before the standoff began.

Family members identified the victims as Sadie Turner, 78, and Gabby Turner, in her 20s. They said she was Lonnie Turner’s sister and adoptive mother.

The violence shocked residents of Fox Chase, where neighbors spent much of the day watching the police response.

“From what I understand, it was a domestic violence case; I think what’s disturbing is that it spilled out into the community. He took the bus, even though it’s in this little sleepy enclave; it’s a main road,” said Fox Chase resident Jennifer Sita. “The scary thing is that he had a gun and he was taking public transportation. I’m very sad for the bus driver who had to experience this.”

Throughout the day, negotiators worked to persuade the man to surrender peacefully, according to residents who observed the response.

“From what I was hearing, they were really trying to get him to give up on his own. They were trying to make things safe for him, telling some SWAT guys to put their weapons away; I heard them trying to do that, trying to make him comfortable,” Rosario said.

Road closures and a heavy police presence affected nearby businesses and residents throughout the day, but some said the biggest problem was uncertainty related to the potentially volatile situation in the neighborhood, which doesn’t happen often.

“What ended up happening happened, but it was a long day of fear in the community and ignorance,” she said.

The investigation is still ongoing.

Family members said they believe the Fox Chase standoff and the Cedarbrook double homicide are connected.

They also said Lonnie Turner had recently been released from prison and was living in the house where the two women were killed.