Possible links probed after two workers were shot in New York and Philadelphia

Two seemingly random attacks in New York and Philadelphia last week could be linked to a single person, authorities said Friday.

Both victims survived. In both cases, the shooter appeared to be aiming for the head, according to police and security video.

The video, edited by the Philadelphia Police Department and released on Friday, shows a man in both attacks wearing nearly identical clothing: a blue hoodie; gray trousers with distinctive, enlarged cargo pockets; hiking or military-style boots; black gloves; and a face covering, possibly including a mask, ski goggle or tight-fitting hoodie.

The shooter in the attack in Philadelphia on the afternoon of Nov. 25 used a silver revolver, police said.

He approached a uniformed Philadelphia Parking Authority officer working under elevated transit lanes and opened fire from behind at close range, according to police statements and edited video.

The victim, identified by city parking officials as 37-year-old Timothy McKenzie, sustained ear and shoulder injuries, police said.

McKenzie, who had issued citations on the block where he was shot, was hospitalized in critical condition but stabilized, police said.

“As Tim continues to improve day by day, we must do our part to help law enforcement apprehend the criminal who intended to kill one of our police officers,” said Philadelphia Parking Authority President Beth Grossman in a statement on Wednesday.

Investigators believe the shooter drove up, then approached the victim to carry out the attack in one fell swoop before fleeing, according to NBC Philadelphia.

On November 22, a man wearing similar clothing approached the cashier’s secure window of a Sunoco station in New York’s Bronx borough, waved to buy gas, then fired twice without saying a word when the employee opened the door, according to the New York Police Department and NBC New York.

The gas station employee, identified by colleagues as Zulfigar Alvi, was shot in the left side of the head, where a bullet or fragment remained, the station reported. Alvi was intubated but was otherwise recovering, according to the station.

A possible connection between the attacks approximately 100 miles apart “has been established based on similarities in the physical characteristics and clothing of the individual sought, as well as the circumstances surrounding the two shootings,” New York police said. in a statement Friday.

In the Philadelphia attack, the rewards for information leading to an arrest and conviction were $20,000.

Denis Romero

Dennis Romero is a breaking news reporter for NBC News Digital.

Myles Miller contributed.