Court records show Eric Lewis had earlier convictions involving firearms, theft and disorderly conduct before the deadly West Philadelphia shooting.
PHILADELPHIA, PA — The man accused of killing a Philadelphia police officer and seriously wounding another in a West Philadelphia ambush had a criminal record that included prior weapons, theft and disorderly conduct cases, according to court records reviewed after the shooting.
Eric Lewis, 35, faces dozens of charges stemming from the Oct. 10 attack, including murder and multiple counts of attempted murder. Authorities allege Lewis opened fire on officers after two members of the Philadelphia Police Department’s 19th District responded shortly after midnight to a report of a person with a gun on North 52nd Street. Officer Shane Seiber, 40, was fatally wounded, while a second officer was seriously injured.
Philadelphia police said the officers encountered a man on a porch and became involved in a struggle before both officers were shot. Other officers who arrived at the scene found Seiber and his partner unresponsive on the porch and rushed them to Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. Seiber was pronounced dead at 9:04 a.m., police said. The second officer, a 33-year-old nine-year department veteran, survived after being shot multiple times.
Police said additional gunfire followed the initial encounter, prompting authorities to declare a barricade and bring in SWAT officers. Prosecutors allege Lewis fired at additional responding officers during the confrontation. None of those officers was struck. Lewis was later taken into custody and transported to a hospital for evaluation before being transferred to homicide investigators.
Court records cited by NBC10 Philadelphia show Lewis had several previous encounters with the criminal justice system. In 2012, he was arrested on charges that included theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property. The charges were reduced to misdemeanors, and he was ultimately found guilty and sentenced to as much as two years of probation.
Lewis was arrested again in 2013 and charged with offenses that included carrying a firearm in public, possessing an instrument of crime and simple assault, according to the records. He was sentenced in 2015 to a probation term of at least three years and up to five years. Records also show he pleaded guilty in 2018 to disorderly conduct involving a fight and received up to 12 months of probation.
The earlier cases have become part of the public record surrounding the new prosecution, but they do not establish Lewis’ guilt in the police shooting. The current charges must be resolved through the court process. Lewis is represented by the Defender Association of Philadelphia, whose chief defender declined to comment on the case Sunday, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Lewis worked for the Philadelphia Water Department before his arrest. Court documents cited by NBC10 list 76 charges connected to the police shooting, including homicide of a law enforcement officer, murder, attempted homicide of law enforcement officers, attempted murder, terroristic threats and other offenses. The precise counts reported by news organizations have varied as charging documents were filed and updated.
Seiber had served with the Philadelphia Police Department since September 2016 and had been assigned to the 19th District since January 2018, according to police. He was married and had two young children. State and city officials issued statements mourning his death, and Pennsylvania officials ordered flags lowered in his honor.
Lewis was arraigned Sunday, Oct. 11, and ordered held without bail, according to court records and published reports. His next court date is scheduled for Oct. 26. Philadelphia police said the homicide investigation remains ongoing.
Author note: Last updated October 11, 2026.