Cross-dressing Philadelphia mass shooter told cops his ghost gun rampage was an attempt to fight the city's gun violence crisis because 'all these guys are out there killing people'

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The suspected Philadelphia mass shooter told police that his deadly rampage earlier this week was an attempt to fight the city's gun violence crisis. 

Police say 40-year-old Kimbrady Carriker wore a bulletproof vest and was armed with two ghost guns - an AR-15-style rifle and a handgun - as he stalked an area spanning several blocks in the Kingsessing section of Philadelphia, where he allegedly shot seven people, killing five of them. 

Carriker, a cross-dresser obsessed by guns, was taken into custody 10 minutes after police arrived on the scene and was arraigned Wednesday on five counts of murder.

In the hours after his arrest, Carriker told police that the killing spree was his way of helping police address the gun violence problem because 'all these guys are out there killing people,' investigative sources told the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Carriker also told the responding officers that they did a good job, but later told detectives that Yahweh, which is a Hebrew name for God, would be sending more people to help.

The suspected gunman Kimbrady Carriker, 40, was arraigned Wednesday on five counts of murder and other charges in the shooting. He is being held without bail

Pictured: Carriker dressed as a woman in a Facebook post from last March

In the hours after his arrest, Carriker allegedly told police the rampage was an attempt to fight the city's gun violence crisis because 'all these guys are out there killing people'

Carriker was last night unmasked as a cross dressing Black Lives Matter supporter who made chilling Facebook posts about 'evil spirits' and 'black massacres.'

The five black males killed in the mass shooting on Monday ranged from 15 to 59 years old.

Police identified the slain victims as Da'Juan Brown, 15, whose residence was unknown; Lashyd Merritt, 20, of the 5500 block of Greenway Avenue; Ralph Moralis, 59, of the 1700 block of South 56th Street; Joseph Wamah, Jr., 31, of the 1600 block of South 56th Street; Dymir Stanton, 29, of the 1700 block of South Frazier Street.

The two children, ages 2 and 13, who suffered gunshot wounds to their legs were not named. A 33-year-old female and a two-year-old male sustained injuries from shattered glass. They are all listed in stable condition.

Daujan Brown, 15, and Lashyd Merritt, 22, were two of the people killed in the mass shooting

Ralph Moralis, 59, and Joseph Wamah Jr., 31, were also both gunned down during the shooter's killing spree. Carriker had no apparent connection with any of the victims

'We're talking about completely innocent bystanders who did absolutely nothing to put themselves at risk and they have suffered this horrifying consequence,' District Attorney Larry Krasner said during an interview on CNN on Wednesday.

Authorities have yet to determine a motive, Krasner said, adding the suspect, who wore a bullet proof vest and a ski mask during the shooting, may have obtained at least one of his weapons illegally.

'The suspect then began shooting aimlessly at occupied vehicles and individuals on the street as they walked,' Staff Inspector Ernest Ransom said.

The vehicles included a mother driving her 2-year-old twins home - one of whom was shot four times in the legs and the other who was hit in the eyes by shattered glass.

Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said the 'armed and armored individual' was firing 'seemingly at random.'

Authorities have yet to determine a motive for the suspect, who wore a bullet proof vest and a ski mask during the shooting, may have obtained at least one of his weapons illegally

Carriker had no apparent connection with any of the victims, who were gunned down during a long holiday weekend marred by a rash of mass shootings across the country

Cornered in an alley, the suspect surrendered and was found to have not only the rifle but also a pistol, extra magazines, a police scanner and a bulletproof vest, police said.

Carriker had no apparent connection with any of the victims, who were gunned down during a long holiday weekend marred by a rash of mass shootings in a country where gun violence has become nearly commonplace.

The alleged killer had a rap sheet dating back to 2003 when he pleaded guilty to carrying a firearm without a license. He was sentenced to three years probation and ordered to pay $1,000. 

Carriker made an appearance in Philadelphia County Municipal Court for an arraignment on charges that also included four counts of attempted murder plus reckless endangerment and aggravated assault charges, court records showed.

No bail was listed in online court records for the suspect. Other media, including CNN, reported bail was denied.

A total of 16 mass shootings took place across the nation from Friday evening until Wednesday morning, leaving 15 dead and 94 injured, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as any in which four or more people are wounded or killed, not including the shooter.

A total of 16 mass shootings took place across the nation from Friday evening until Wednesday morning, leaving 15 dead and 94 injured, according to the Gun Violence Archive. Pictured: A double shooting in the Bronx on Wednesday morning left one teen dead and another hurt

A police officer moves a scooter in the area of a mass shooting incident in the Southern District of Baltimore the morning after gunfire left two dead

In Shreveport, Louisiana, four people died and seven others were wounded in a shooting at an Independence Day celebration just before midnight on Tuesday, local police said.

At least one gunman opened fire at a gathering of close to 100 people in the northwest section of the city, Shreveport police said, adding all four deceased individuals were adults.

Two people died at the scene of the shooting, a third died at a hospital and police later discovered another body in a nearby field on Wednesday morning, Sergeant Angie Willhite, an official with the Shreveport police, said.

The motive for the shooting was not known and no arrests were made as of early Wednesday, according to police.

The attacks in Louisiana and Philadelphia came after gunfire rang out on Sunday in Baltimore during a block party. 

Two people were killed, including an 18-year-old woman, and 28 injured in that shooting. Authorities were still hunting for suspects, pleading with the public to come forward with information on their whereabouts.

Another mass shooting occurred in Salisbury, Maryland during a block party. It left a 14-year-old boy dead and six injured.

An 18-year-old man was transported by EMS to Saint Barnabas Hospital where he was pronounced deceased. The 19-year-old male was in stable condition. 

St. Louis Metropolitan Police are investigating a half-dozen shootings Wednesday morning

Gun violence tends to spike over the Fourth of July holiday in the United States due to a number of factors, according to James Alan Fox, a criminologist at Northeastern University.

'You have people not working and not in school. You have large gatherings, alcohol, hot weather and concealed weapons held by participants,' Fox said. 'You have a dangerous situation.'

The rash of gun violence over the last several days is part of a surge in mass shootings in the United States since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

As of Wednesday, 351 mass shootings have taken place across the country so far this year. At that pace, the United States will experience 689 mass shootings in 2023, just shy of the 690 recorded in 2021, the most of any year since 2014, according to the Gun Violence Archive.