Stacey Hayes, 55, is charged with murder in connection with the shooting death of 43-year-old Anrae James at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital early Monday. Hayes also faces four counts of attempted murder and other charges for allegedly firing at officers who responded to a report of gunfire in Philadelphia’s Parkside neighborhood approximately 1.30 a.m. that same day.
Officers found a suspect in body armor and carrying multiple weapons, Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said. After the suspect began shooting, she said, four officers returned fire, striking him in the upper body and neck.
Two of the officers were also shot; one hit in the elbow, the another shot in the nose. Both are expected to recover.
Following the attack, court documents have emerged that show authorities seized three firearms from Hayes in August 2020, before being returned in June 2021.
The documents, obtained by The Philadelphia Inquirer, showed the Philadelphia Police Department was ordered to return the firearms—a handgun, a shotgun and an AR-15 rifle—and ammunition to Hayes. Court documents do not reveal why the weapons were taken from him, the Inquirer reported.
But court documents obtained by local station WCAU, showed that Hayes filed a motion in April asking a judge to order police to return his property “because the property was purchased legally by me, I didn’t commit any crime and I feel like the property should be returned to me because I am not a threat to anyone.
“I just want to be able to protect myself and my family if needed.”
Newsweek has contacted the police department, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office and Jefferson Health for comment.
On Tuesday, Chief Inspector Frank Vanore told The Inquirer that surveillance footage shows Hayes getting off an elevator and “walking directly toward” James before opening fire.
It was not clear if Hayes was supposed to be working at the time of the shooting, Vanore added, but detectives believe he used an employee entrance to access the building.
Vanore said detectives were still trying to figure out why Hayes might have targeted James, a certified nursing assistant. “We have not discovered any hostility between them, or any issues that we can point out,” Vanore said.