PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A pair of young brothers are currently in police custody as detectives speak with them about what happened to 73-year-old James Lambert, who was found brutally beaten near Brewerytown last month.
Investigators believe the brothers, ages 10 and 14, are two of the group of about seven who struck Lambert in the head with roadside cones and other objects around 2:30 a.m. on June 24.
Lambert died the next day.
Sources tell KYW Newsradio that officials are speaking with parents of the other young people suspected in the attack and working out how to get them in to question them as well.
Neither of the two minor brothers has been charged, and because of their age, police will not release their identities.
The Medical Examiner's Office ruled the cause of Lambert's death to be blunt-force trauma to the head, and police are investigating the incident as a homicide.
Rania Major, the attorney for the boys, spoke to NBC10 on the boys’ behalf outside police headquarters.
“It’s a very sad situation for all of the children, for the man’s family and for everybody involved,” she said. “They were normal kids. Do you remember when you snuck out of your house? … These are children, so let’s let them have their peace.”
The victim’s sister, Elise Stephens, also spoke to NBC10.
“How can they sleep? I can’t sleep. I’m having nightmares,” she said. “I’m not gonna say nothing bad about the parents because I know deep down inside, I know the parents are not going along with this.”
Surveillance video available on the Philadelphia Police Department YouTube channel shows the attack. The video may be disturbing to some and is age-restricted.
Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call 911. Tips can be submitted anonymously online, or by calling or texting 215-686-8477.
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