A man who shot a uniformed police officer in Philadelphia last January 7 has been charged with attempted murder. Police are now investigating a tip saying that officials should be concerned about more people radicalized by the Islamic State (IS).
The man in question, identified as Edward Archer, 30, has been denied bail at his arraignment and is also accused of aggravated assault and assault on a uniformed officer, New York Post reported.
He is accused of shooting Officer Jesse Hartnett, 33, as the cop was patrolling a residential area on Thursday evening. Reportedly, Hartnett was struck thrice in the arm and the officer went out of his vehicle in an attempt to catch the suspect. Archer was shot once in the buttocks and was released to police custody after being treated.
After the incident, a woman reportedly stopped a car and proclaimed that Archer is an IS sympathizer. The unnamed woman warned the officials that there are more people like the suspect, Fox News shared.
Philadelphia Police Department said in a statement, "Last night a Philadelphia police officer was stopped by a citizen on the street who proceeded to make statements regarding the defendant involved in the shooting ambush on Officer Hartnett. The citizen alleged the defendant had an affiliation to a group with radical beliefs."
The agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Joint Terrorism Task Force is now searching the Internet activity or Archer to find activities on what led to his radicalization from other IS members. He reportedly traveled to Saudi Arabia in 2011 and also in Egypt last 2012. He also reportedly claimed that he follows Allah and pledged his allegiance to the IS after he was arrested.
ABC News also reported that despite the investigation of a possible large group radicalized by the IS, it is likely that the attack on the officer by Archer is a "lone-wolf" act of terror.
Archer was also arrested once in the past but details about this have not been made public. He has a United States passport and was not on a watch list. The investigation is still ongoing.
