Young people on the streets in a small section of West Philly after 9 p.m. on Fridays and Saturday could be picked up by police under new curfew regulations aimed at deterring “flash mobs” in the downtown area.

The new regulations temporarily move the curfew for youths under 18 years of age from midnight to 9 p.m. on those days in Center City and a small section of West Philly. The new curfew is part of a plan announced yesterday by Mayor Michael Nutter that includes a bolstered police presence and longer hours for neighborhood recreation centers. The curfew for the rest of the city remains the same (midnight for youths 13-18 and 10 p.m. for children under 13).

The curfew will be enforced with additional police presence in West Philly from Market Street to Baltimore Avenue and 38th Street to 43rd Street.

Nutter’s announcement comes a little over a week after roving gangs of young people severely injured pedestrians in Center City on July 29 (see video below). Among those arrested was an 11-year-old boy. Those attacks happened in the afternoon.

Fines of up to $300 will be levied against young people who violate the curfew. Parents could also be fined and even jailed if their children repeatedly violate the curfew.

District Attorney Seth Williams, who stood side-by-side with Nutter during yesterday’s announcement, said:

“We will be prosecuting these young criminals to the fullest extent of the law. There is no excuse for what they did, and they have brought great shame upon themselves and their families. Let this be a message to any others who think that participating in flash mobs is acceptable or fun — don’t do it. We will apprehend you, prosecute you, and send you away. You will not damage the reputation of our great City. And I will be working with our State Legislature and City Council to enact laws to hold those parents who permit their children to engage in this type of criminal conduct criminally accountable.”

The new curfew will last through the remainder of the summer and will be re-evaluated at the beginning of the school year.

The city has also authorized some 20 rec centers to extend hours until 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights.

Centers in West Philly with extended hours include:

Myers Recreation Center • 5800 Kingsessing Avenue
Christy Recreation Center • 728 S. 55th Street
Kingsessing Recreation Center • 5000 Chester Avenue
Shepard Recreation Center • 5700 Haverford Avenue

Here is surveillance video of one July 29 attack (originally posted on MyFoxPhilly). Some of the boys in the video are still wearing their school uniforms.

Video: Philadelphia Teen Mob Attack: MyFoxPHILLY.com

A 39-year-old man was robbed at gunpoint on the 200 block of S. 46th St. last night and this time it was not a BB gun. The man was shot in the foot when he resisted, according to police.

The victim told police he was walking along 46th Street between Spruce and Locust Streets near his home at about 10:45 p.m. when he was approached by two males ages 18-20 who asked him if he had a light for a cigarette. One of the young men then drew a grey handgun and demanded the man surrender his belongings. They took his wallet, which contained $70 cash and some credit cards, and searched through his pockets.

At one point, he told police, he resisted and the man holding the gun said, “This gun’s not fake,” and shot the man in the foot. Police found a shell casing near the scene but did not release the caliber of the gun.

The unidentified victim was transported to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and was in stable condition this morning, police said.

The incident was the latest in a string of gunpoint robberies in the area involving young men in their late teens. Some of those robberies have been committed with BB guns, some of which police have recovered. Also, a few victims in recent days have successfully fought back against would-be robbers. But police are asking people not to take chances. Here is a comment by Southwest Detective Joe Murray on the recent rash of gunpoint robberies.

Police supplied descriptions of the two suspects:

• Black male, dark skin. Height: 5-1 to 5-5. Thin build, closely cropped hair. Wearing a black t-shirt with white stripes.

• Black male, light skin. Height: 5-10. Thin build. Longer hair. Wearing a tan t-shirt with a tie-die pattern on it.

The family of 22-year-old Drexel senior Evan Morris is urging police to continue the investigation of their son’s death, saying he may have been “set up,” the Daily News reports today.

Morris was stabbed three times early Friday morning in his ex-girlfriend’s apartment on the 3400 block of Race Street and later died. Police have said that the man who stabbed him, an unnamed student from another university, acted in self defense and that charges would likely not be filed in the case.

But Morris’ parents have hired an attorney, Willie Nattiel Jr., who told the Daily News:

“We believe that there is much more involved with this. We don’t like that he was being portrayed as this crazed burglar.”

Nattiel even speculated that Morris may have been “set up.”

Read the entire article here.

Police are reporting that two young men recently tried to rob two Russian nationals at gunpoint near the 4800 block of Walnut St. The Russians proceeded to beat the two men up and take their BB gun.

Police say the incident, which happened Thursday, was one of several robberies or attempted robberies on that day in the neighborhood. Thursday’s robberies are part of a rash of robberies over the last few days. Most have been clustered within a six-block radius of 48th and Baltimore. Below are details on some of them. The information comes from a combination of police reports, an anonymous e-mail to westphillylocal.com and Southwest Detective Joe Murray’s must-read Twitter feed.

• Thursday, July 28 – A 25-year-old man was approached near 49th and Cedar at about 1 a.m. by a 19-year-old carrying a black handgun. The victim fled on foot but was cornered by a second young male. Both men beat him up and stole his cell phone, which was valued at $215.

• Thursday, July 28 – A 32-year-old female was approached by two males near 48th and Cedar at 12:13 p.m. One male grabbed her purse. The woman fought back, but the two men fled with her car keys. The woman refused to file a report.  A witness, who asked that her name not be used, e-mailed us with some details on this one. She wrote:

“Two women and a twelve week old infant in a baby carriage were mugged in the middle of the day on Thursday, July 28th. The thief was carrying a gun and approached from behind on the south side of the 4800 block of Cedar.”

• Thursday, July 28 – Three armed and masked young men entered the Fresh Deli (4832 Baltimore Ave.) and attempted to rob it at about 10:30 p.m.. The owner, who was unarmed, chased the men out. Detective Murray wrote: “He’s lucky.”

• Thursday, July 28 – Plainclothes officers from the 18th District arrested a man who had broken into a home at about 1 p.m. and stolen a laptop and iPod. The items were returned to the owner.

Murray also warned residents that it’s not a good idea to fight back against armed robbers, despite the success by some folks above. He wrote: “Two robberies I posted had unarmed people fighting people with guns. Don’t roll the dice on it being a fake gun..plenty of real ones out there.”

A 22-year-old Drexel University student was found stabbed to death in an apartment near campus that he may have broken into early this morning, according to police.

The student, senior Evan Morris, was found with multiple stab wounds in the body and head at about 5 a.m. in an apartment on the 3400 block of Race Street, according to reports. The block borders the Drexel campus. He was later pronounced dead at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania.

Drexel President John Fry said in a statement that “we do not yet have complete information about this tragedy, it appears that an altercation between Evan and a student from another university ultimately resulted in Evan’s death.”

News outlets are reporting that the student is being questioned but has not been charged.

OK, it’s definitely embarrassing to have your family photos unknowingly put online. But in this case it might help you get your stolen camera back.

Police are still trying to track down the owners of a large cache of stolen goods seized during a raid of a clothing store recently near 52nd and Chestnut. Last week they invited robbery and burglary victims to the police headquarters at 55th and Pine to look over hundreds of cameras, cell phones and pieces of jewelry. Now the Southwest Division Burglary Task Force has posted things online, including photos taken off the memory cards of seized cameras in hopes that the camera owners might recognize them.

More photos from cameras as well as pictures of jewelry and other items are here.