DES MOINES, IOWA (AP) – Authorities arrested six teenagers accused of shooting into a group that had gathered outside an Iowa high school, killing a 15-year-old boy and seriously wounding two teenage girls, police said on Tuesday.
The suspects are each charged with first-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder in the Monday afternoon shooting on the grounds of East High School, near Des Moines’ downtown. Police said gunshots fired outside the school came from several shooters from multiple vehicles.
Police named the suspects as Octavio Lopez, 17; Henry Valladares-Amaya, 17; Manuel Buezo, 16; Romero Perdomo, 16; Alex Perdomo, 15; and Nyang Chamdual, 14. All are from Des Moines and the school district didn’t identify any as attending East.
Police identified the 15-year-old killed as Jose David Lopez, of Des Moines. Lopez, who was not a student at the school, was the intended target of the drive-by shooting, police said.
The other two shot are females, 16 and 18, who both attend East and were among a group standing with Lopez when they were inadvertently shot, police said. Police said the 16-year-old girl remained hospitalised on Tuesday in serious condition, while the 18-year-old remained hospitalised in critical condition.
Police said search warrants were conducted at five Des Moines homes and six vehicles in the hours after the shooting. Investigators seized six guns during those searches, police said.
According to court documents, neighbourhood camera footage captured the shooting.
Surveillance footage also showed vehicles matching the description from the shooting site departing another site and then returning soon after the shooting. The footage showed individuals that took part in the shooting, according to court documents.
Investigators recovered about 20 spent shell casings at the shooting site and found another 15 in the vehicles that police said were used in the shooting. A motive was not immediately known.
Police said it was the fourth homicide in Des Moines this year.
