LEVITTOWN, Pa. — John Thomas Mathis, 44, of Levittown, is facing a new set of felony charges in Bucks County following a violent crime spree on August 2, 2025, that included an armed robbery in Philadelphia, a gunpoint threat in Bensalem, and an officer-involved shooting.
The latest charges were filed on Wednesday by Bucks County Detectives. Mathis remains in custody at the Bucks County Correctional Facility and is scheduled to be arraigned Friday.
Authorities say Mathis began his crime spree around 4:54 p.m. by robbing a Metro by T-Mobile store located at 7221 Frankford Avenue in Philadelphia. Armed with a black semi-automatic handgun, he stole approximately $1,000 in cash before fleeing the scene on a black Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle, heading north into Bucks County.
Less than an hour later, at 5:43 p.m., a driver on northbound Bristol Pike in Bensalem Township called 911 to report that a man on a motorcycle—later confirmed to be Mathis—had pointed a handgun at their face and threatened to shoot and rob them.
Responding to the scene, a Bensalem Township police officer located Mathis and positioned his patrol vehicle between the suspect and the victim. Mathis reportedly fled on foot, with a firearm in hand. The officer, after issuing commands for Mathis to stop and show his hands, fired his weapon when Mathis did not comply. Mathis was shot, treated at the hospital, and later released. A black 9mm pistol was recovered at the scene and determined to be unregistered and illegally possessed.
Mathis is legally prohibited from owning firearms due to prior felony convictions.
In addition to his charges from Philadelphia, Mathis now faces the following charges in Bucks County:
Robbery
Theft by unlawful taking
Two counts each of:
Prohibited possession of a firearm
Firearms not to be carried without a license
Receiving stolen property
Terroristic threats
Possession of a weapon
Possession of an instrument of crime
Simple assault
Three counts of recklessly endangering another person
Evading arrest or detention on foot
Driving on a suspended license
Reckless driving
Driving an unregistered vehicle
At the time of the incidents, Mathis was already facing pending charges from a separate road rage incident that occurred on July 27 in Bucks County.
The case is being jointly investigated by the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office and the Philadelphia Police Department’s Northeast Detective Division. Deputy District Attorney Megan Hunsicker is prosecuting the case.
