Willie R. Tubbs, FISM News
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A Pennsylvania congresswoman had her car stolen at gunpoint in broad daylight Wednesday.
Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, a Democrat who represents Pennsylvania’s 5th District, confirmed via a statement on Twitter that she’d been carjacked following a meeting near Franklin D. Roosevelt Park in South Philadelphia. The 5th District is comprised of the suburban areas of nearby Delaware County but includes parts of South Philadelphia.
“The Congresswoman was physically unharmed,” a statement from Scanlon’s office on Twitter reads. “She thanks the Philadelphia Police Department for the swift response, and appreciates the efforts of both Sergeant at Arms in D.C. and her local police department for coordinating with Philly PD to ensure her continued safety.”
Statement from the Office of Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon on today's incident: pic.twitter.com/fomScnWUXo
— Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (@RepMGS) December 22, 2021
Coincidentally, the case was cracked and five suspects were taken into custody in the state of Delaware, about an hour’s drive from where the crime occurred.
According to a press release from the Delaware State Police, Scanlon’s car was located at a shopping center in Newark.
“The 2017 Blue Acura MDX which was stolen out of Philadelphia, PA earlier today in an armed carjacking incident was located at 2800 Fashion Center Boulevard, Newark at approximately 9:00 p.m. this evening,” the release reads. “The suspects were transported back to Delaware State Police Troop 2 for processing. The investigation is on-going and additional details will be released once it becomes available,” the release reads.
According to a report by Reuters, a pair of armed men had pulled guns on Scanlon and taken her keys. One man drove off in Scanlon’s car while the other got into a second vehicle and followed.
A Fox affiliate in Philadelphia reported that it was unclear if any of the five people arrested were responsible for the initial carjacking or even connected. It is not uncommon for stolen vehicles to quickly pass among criminals, or for a different individual to find an abandoned car and simply drive off in it. This would make a person a party to larceny, but not culpable for carjacking.
In the immediate aftermath of the carjacking, Fox News pointed out that Scanlon, whose platform includes calls for police reform and who had sponsored a bill aimed at restructuring police forces, had been held up in a Democrat-run city whose crime has spiked.
It is important to note, however, that while Scanlon does promote police reform, she has not publicly advocated for defunding the police. Her position has been that police need more training to deal with mental health and race issues, police forces should end military-style tactics, and that wellness checks could be better handled by unarmed officials with specific training.
In June 2020, as the nation was mired in riots, Scanlon introduced a house resolution that condemned brutality, racial profiling, and the use of excessive force by police and called for more accountability and unbiased policing; but this resolution, which carried nothing more than rhetorical weight, contained no language related to funding.
She’s also sought federal funding to improve mental health and addiction services in her district.