A 16-year-old boy was found shot in the chest inside the bathroom of a Chipotle restaurant near Temple University just after 5 p.m. Monday, Jan. 12, police said. The shooting happened at North 12th Street and Montgomery Avenue on the edge of campus. The victim was pronounced dead at a hospital. No arrests were announced as of Tuesday.
The killing shook an area crowded with students returning for the first day of Temple’s spring semester and raised fresh concerns about violent crime around off-campus housing and eateries. Detectives said they are pulling video from building cameras and nearby businesses while interviewing employees and customers who were inside during the evening rush. Investigators believe at least two other teens were in or near the bathroom when the shooting occurred, and they are seeking a total of three people for questioning. The restaurant sits at the base of The View at Montgomery apartments, a complex heavily used by students, intensifying attention from campus leaders and parents.
Chief Inspector Scott Small said the boy entered the restaurant with other teens and asked for a bathroom key before the group walked toward the back of the shop. Minutes later, workers found the 16-year-old unresponsive on the floor with a single gunshot wound to the chest and called 911. Officers recovered one spent shell casing inside. “He was found in the restroom with a gunshot wound to the chest,” Small said, noting that responding officers began life-saving efforts before medics transported the teen. The shooting took place as customers lined up at the counter and tables were occupied, adding to the urgency of the early response.
Authorities identified the victim as Khyon Smith-Tate, 16. Police said preliminary video shows two teens entering the restroom after Smith-Tate and leaving moments later. Detectives are working to determine whether the shooting was accidental or intentional and whether the gun was brought in by someone in the group. A detailed description of the teens sought was not released publicly. No weapon was recovered at the scene, investigators said. Homicide detectives canvassed the block for additional shell casings or discarded items and collected digital footage from interior and exterior cameras to reconstruct the timeline.
Temple University’s campus safety office said its officers assisted city police with traffic control and scene security after the shooting, which happened just outside university-controlled property. The Chipotle is located beneath residential floors of The View at Montgomery, a building that houses hundreds of students a block from the Howard Gittis Student Center. The area around 12th Street and Montgomery Avenue is typically busy at the dinner hour on weekdays when classes are in session. Students in nearby buildings reported receiving safety alerts advising them to avoid the intersection as investigators processed evidence into the night.
Philadelphia has grappled with youth-involved shootings near schools and transit hubs, though officials say overall city homicides fell last year from recent highs. The area around Temple has seen periodic spikes in robberies and assaults, prompting expanded patrols and security partnerships with private housing operators. Residents said the mix of restaurants and apartments draws steady foot traffic. “There were a lot of people outside when the sirens arrived,” said Jordan Lewis, who lives in a nearby building. “It was chaotic for a while, and then it got very quiet.” Workers in adjacent stores said police asked for access to security systems shortly after they arrived.
Detectives outlined the next steps in the case: pulling longer camera clips from the building’s lobby and stairwells, locating the teens seen entering the restroom, and tracing any firearm that may have been used. Autopsy results are pending. Officials did not release a motive. City leaders said additional patrols would remain in the area through the week while classes ramp up and businesses reopen after the holiday break. Prosecutors typically review the case once detectives identify suspects, a process that can include witness interviews, phone records and digital evidence from the store and surrounding blocks.
By Tuesday evening, a small cluster of flowers had appeared near the restaurant’s entrance. Friends described Smith-Tate as a friendly teen who frequented the corridor with classmates. “He was a happy little boy growing up,” a neighbor said in a television interview, recalling him from the block where he lived. The restaurant remained closed during processing and cleanup, with paper covering the front glass as police tape cordoned off the sidewalk. Commuters detoured around marked cars as investigators finished photographing the interior and packed equipment into vans.
As of late Tuesday, Philadelphia police had not announced arrests or charges. Detectives continued to seek the three teens seen near the restroom and to gather video from the building and adjacent corners. Further updates are expected once investigators finish reviewing surveillance clips and identify persons of interest.
Author note: Last updated January 13, 2026.