Family of slain man found wrapped in tarp speaks out; Midweek warmup leads to storms, Teen injured in shooting

THE RUNDOWN: 

1. Family of slain man found wrapped in tarp, dumped in Kensington lot searching for answers

PHILADELPHIA - The family of a Philadelphia man whose body was found wrapped in a tarp and dumped in a vacant lot in Kensington is searching for answers. 

According to investigators, the body of 34-year-old Sirius Star was found Friday in the vacant lot on the 2800 block of Ruth Street. 

Police say Star's hands and feet were bound, and the medical examiner's office determined that he died from a gunshot wound to the forehead. 

A short video clip obtained by FOX 29 shows two people pushing the body in a shopping cart and trying to move it. 

Family members say Starr was working at a home construction project on Rorer Street, which isn't far from the vacant lot where his body was found. Star's girlfriend said she started getting strange text messages from his number around 3:30 p.m.

The family claims Star's phone started going directly to voicemail around 5 p.m., which launched a brief but frantic search for Star until authorities confirmed his death.

The family described Star as a hard worker who was fiercely loyal to his circle and made people around him better. 

"Everyone knows something, that area is too small and too tight for someone not to know," Spain said. 

2. Man charged in alleged DUI crash that killed 3-year-old in Philadelphia

Authorities believe a man was intoxicated when he jumped the curb of a Philadelphia street and fatally struck a 3-year-old Monday morning. 

Timothy Robinson, 62, was charged with Involuntary Manslaughter, Homicide by Vehicle, Homicide by Vehicle while DUI, DUI, Reckless Endangerment of Another Person, and Reckless Driving. 

According to the District Attorney's Office, Robinson was driving on the 3000 block of West Girard Avenue around 11 a.m. Monday when he hopped the curb and struck a mother and her 3-year-old child. 

Authorities said the mother was not injured, but the 3-year-old was taken to Temple University Hospital where the child died. 

"Intoxicated driving is never okay, and this tragedy is why," Krasner said in a statement. "My office will work to hold Mr. Robinson accountable, but I also want to re-commit to working with our public safety partners in the city to confront traffic violence for the public safety threat that it is."

3. Midweek warmup will bring potentially severe storms to area

Cold conditions will continue on Wednesday before a meaningful rise in temperature on Thursday leads to a round of storms that could be severe in some places.

Forecasters expect another frigid night across the Delaware Valley Tuesday with temperatures in the below freezing in Philadelphia and its suburbs. Blustery wind chills will make it feel like the teens and 20s. 

Temperatures will stay near the freezing point on Wednesday morning, with cold wind gusts that will blow up to 25 MPH. FOX 29's Kathy Orr says a round of scattered sprinkles will move through on Wednesday afternoon and areas farther north could see flurries. 

Winds will change directions on Thursday and pump warm southern air into the Delaware Valley to help temperatures rise into the 70s. Forecasters expect lingering showers with temperatures in the 50s during the morning before a stronger system moves in during the dinner time hours. 

The strongest storms are expected to stay far south of Philadelphia, including all of Delaware and a sliver of New Jersey's southern point. In these areas, storms could turn severe with damaging winds. 

4. Human remains found in wooded area of Chester park

Authorities in Chester are investigating the discovery of human remains in a wooded area of a park.

Chester police responded to Deshong Park shortly after 7 p.m. Monday night after receiving a call about a human body in the park. 

Officers arrived on the scene and were directed to a part of the park off of East 11th Street where they located the remains of an unidentified person. 

Police have not released more information about the circumstances of the person’s death at this time. 

The medical examiner remained on the scene Tuesday afternoon. 

5. Over two dozen shots fired in Philadelphia street shootout that injured teen, police say

A teenager is recovering from gunshot wounds after police say a fight escalated to a street shooting Tuesday afternoon in West Philadelphia.

Officers from the Philadelphia Police Department were called to the intersection of Media and Frazier streets around 4:30 p.m. for reports of shots fired. 

Police Commissioner Scott Small told reporters that a 17-year-old boy was found lying on the sidewalk with two gunshot wounds to his lower back. Police drove the teen to Penn Presbyterian Hospital where he was placed in stable condition, Small said. 

Investigators believe a fight between three or four young men erupted into a shooting during which at least 28 shots were fired from two separate caliber weapons. 

Small believes the 17-year-old who was injured in the shootout was one of the gunmen. The teen is being held at the hospital as a person of interest, Small said. 

At least one nearby parked van was hit by stray gunfire, but no other injuries or property damage was reported. 

6. FDA approves 2nd COVID-19 vaccine booster for those 50 and older

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized Americans who are 50 years and older to receive a second booster of the COVID-19 vaccine from either Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna. 

The authorization makes millions more Americans eligible for a fourth dose. Currently, the U.S. urges two primary shots followed months later by a booster dose for everyone age 12 and older. 

The second booster approved Tuesday for those 50 and up should be administered at least four months after the previous booster, the FDA said. 

A fourth dose had only been recommended for people with severely weakened immune systems, who need three doses to begin with for the best chance at any protection. The agency said this especially fragile group also can get an additional booster, a fifth shot.

Hours later, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended the extra shot as an option but stopped short of urging that those eligible rush out and get it right away. 

Numerous scientific studies have proven that booster doses of authorized vaccines help restore waning immunity and protect against serious COVID-19. Booster programs in countries including Britain, Canada and the U.S. have been credited with preventing the surge in omicron infections from spilling over into hospitals and cemeteries.

In March, Pfizer and its partner BioNTech asked U.S. regulators to authorize a second booster dose of their COVID-19 vaccine for older adults, saying data from Israel suggested the demographic would benefit. Drugmaker Moderna also asked to authorize a fourth shot of its COVID-19 vaccine as a booster dose for all adults.

7. Spam text messages sent from your own number are from ‘bad actors,’ Verizon says

Many Verizon customers have reported the spam messages in recent days, with the company formally acknowledging the issue Tuesday. Verizon blamed "bad actors" as the source of the spam texts. 

The company said it’s actively working to block the messages and have even involved U.S. law enforcement to identify and hopefully stop whoever or whatever is sending out the spam texts. 

The spam messages look like a text from themselves that reads: "Free Msg: Your bill is paid for March. Thanks, here’s a little gift for you," followed by a URL link. 

If you did receive this text, first things first - do not click on the link. Now that you’ve avoided that, Verizon has asked customers to forward the text to SPAM (7726) and write "spoofed number."  

Verizon assured customers that forwarding the text to their spam team would not flag or block their numbers. 

Customers can also simply delete the text or tweet at Verizon Support and will be directed to DM the account to address the issue further. 

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