PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Police are searching for a masked suspect who investigators say has been terrorizing people in downtown Philadelphia. Video released by police on Monday shows a masked man chasing a woman who was jogging near City Hall last Wednesday around 5:30 a.m. He was holding his cell phone in front of her, at which point he asked her, ‘Are you ready to die?'” Philadelphia Police Capt. Jason Smith said. IMAGE: Police are searching for this masked suspect who chased a jogger last Wednesday near Philadelphia City Hall. Police said the frightened victim tried to flee. “The woman is screaming for help the whole time,” Smith said. The “man stops abruptly and heads north on 15th Street, at which point he climbs into the car. escalators at the Suburban station.” Fighting the attacker Another woman recalled her encounter with the suspect minutes earlier. Jameka, who asked that her last name not be used, said she saw the masked suspect approaching the hallway near the La Colombe coffee shop. She said the woman was wearing headphones. “I started waving at her from the other side of the intersection and saying, ‘Hey, there’s someone behind you, look behind you.’ “And she heard me, and then she started running away,” Jameka recalled. She then watched him attempt to force his way into La Colombe before turning his attention to her. “I thought if something was going to happen, I wanted to see it with my own eyes,” he said. He turned around, screamed, and kicked the attacker in the chest. But he said something seemed strange about the man. “He seemed so disoriented about what his targets actually were. He had bags; he wasn’t reaching for those. It didn’t seem like he had a clear goal of going into La Colombe to do something, so I said, ‘Okay, let’s see if you can fight, and he couldn’t.'” While in the cafeteria, Kate Egan told Action News that the suspect terrorized one of her co-workers, but a security guard intervened. All of the victims were able to escape unharmed. “It’s pretty disturbing,” she said. The incidents have left Egan and others concerned. “It’s really disturbing to just try to go to work and have a kid like this actively terrorize women,” Egan said. “Investigators believe the suspect is between 16 and 20 years old. Police said the suspect allegedly hinted that he had a weapon at one point, although no weapon was ever seen. with information should contact Philadelphia Police at 215-686-TIPS (8477).
