Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel leaving the Juanita Kidd Stout Center for Criminal Justice during a break in the first day of trial for defendants in the shooting death of Philadelphia Police Officer Richard Mendez on Wednesday. Read more Alejandro A. Alvarez / Staff Photographer

by Jesse Bunch Published Nov. 12, 2025, 5:26 p.m. ET

The trial of three men accused of killing Philadelphia Police Officer Richard Mendez and injuring another officer during a shooting in an airport parking lot began Wednesday in Common Pleas Court.

Yobranny Martinez-Fernandez and Hendrick Pena-Fernandez are charged with second-degree murder and robbery in the October 2023 crime.

A third man, Alexander Batista-Polanco, faced similar charges but pleaded guilty to third-degree murder les

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