A homeless man is facing a murder charge in connection with a home invasion and fatal shooting in Frankford in January.
Homicide investigators arrested George Pines, 50, on Feb. 22, about a month after the slaying on the 1500 block of Adams Ave. Terrance Solomon, 35, of the 900 block of W. Cheltenham Ave., and an unidentified woman were wounded in the gunfire. Solomon perished hours later.
According to police, Pines broke into the occupied house shortly after midnight, threatened at least three people with a gun and demanded money and drugs. It is unknown what prompted the shooting. Solomon suffered wounds of the head and face, while the woman victim, 31, was wounded in the head, chest and arm, but survived. A third victim was in the house at the time but was not wounded.
Solomon died at about 10:30 that night at Hahnemann University Hospital.
Investigators did not disclose what led them to suspect Pines of the crime. Details of his arrest were not disclosed. Pines has been listed as homeless. In a previous criminal case, he was listed as a resident of the 19111 ZIP code, which spans from Oxford Circle and Lawncrest north to Fox Chase and Bell’s Corner.
Pines is being held at Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility without bail. He is charged with murder, attempted murder, conspiracy, robbery, burglary, two counts of aggravated assault and firearms offenses. Police did not disclose the reason for the conspiracy charge, which requires that the defendant allegedly acted in collaboration with another person. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on March 11.
In 2013, Pines was arrested for urinating in public, found guilty at trial and fined $300, according to court records. ••
