Overview
- Billy Schmidt, 22, was shot once in the chest and later died at Penn Presbyterian after an encounter on the 1900 block of Durfor Street early Saturday morning when two men allegedly took his phone.
- Multiple neighbor surveillance videos and audio captured Schmidt pleading “Give me back my phone” and show one man throwing a phone, Schmidt chasing another, and a gunman turning and firing.
- Schmidt was a Penn State student studying digital journalism and media who had been returning from watching the NBA Finals with friends and lived a short walk from the scene.
- The Philadelphia Police Homicide Unit is investigating, has not made arrests, and is asking anyone who recognizes the men in the footage to call 215-686-3334 or submit an anonymous tip to 215-686-TIPS.
- Neighbors have turned over camera clips and set up a street memorial for Schmidt, and the case highlights how local surveillance and public tips are driving modern urban homicide probes and could shape how police solve similar street robberies.