Alabama shooting – update: Six suspects including boy, 15, arrested over Dadeville Sweet 16 party attack
It is unclear how many suspects are being sought in the April 15 ‘Sweet 16’ shooting
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Six suspects have now been arrested over the mass shooting at a “Sweet 16” birthday party that left four people dead and 32 injured in Dadeville, Alabama.
On Thursday, authorities announced that three more suspects were taken into custody including a 15-year-old who has not been named due to his age, Johnny Letron Brown, 20, and Willie George Brown Jr., 19.
The arrests bring the total number of people arrested over the shooting to six after the earlier arrests of Wilson LaMar Hill Jr, 20, and brothers Ty Reik McCullough, 17, and Travis McCullough, 16.
All six have been charged with four counts of reckless murder.
The latest arrests come five days after the horror attack at the Mahogany Masterpiece Dance Studio on Saturday night.
High school football star Philstavious “Phil” Dowdell, 18, was one of the four killed in the incident and it has emerged that he died saving the life of his sister Alexis, whose birthday celebration it was.
Shaunkivia Nicole “KeKe” Smith, 17, Marsiah Collins, 19, and Corbin Holston, 23, were also killed.
No motive has been outlined by the police.
WATCH: Police announce arrests at Wednesday’s press conference
Who are the suspects arrested?
Authorities announced the arrests of 17-year-old Ty Reik McCullough, 16-year-old Travis McCullough and Wilson LaMar Hill Jr, 20, on Wednesday, three days after four people were killed and 32 injured by gunfire at a Sweet 16 party. According to local outlet AL.com, the teen suspects are brothers.
The teens were taken into custody on Tuesday night, while Mr LaMar was arrested on Wednesday evening. They have been charged with four counts of reckless murder.
Sgt Jeremy Burkett of the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said during a press conference that a motive for the shooting has been determined, but details will not be shared with the public at this time.
“Please understand, with the violence that went on and the magnitude of what happened, we are absolutely still in the early stages of the investigation,” Sgt Burkett said. “This is the beginning, this is not the end. There is a tremendous amount of work that is yet to be done.”
Man with same name as one of alleged Dadeville shooter receives threats
Ty Reik McCullough, 17, and his 16-year-old brother Travis McCullough were arrested by the Alabama police in connection with the Dadeville shooting where four people lost their lives.
However, a 36-year-old man, who is also named Travis McCullough, has been receiving threatening and hateful messages on social media.
“I’ve been scared to go outside just because of the messages and comments I’ve been seeing,” Mr McCullough told Montgomery Advertiser.
Mr McCullough works as a delivery driver and lives 40 miles northeast in the valley. He initially began deleting the hate comments and DMs but later realised he might need proof of the threats if something bad were to happen.
“I’ve been cautious about that all day,” he said. “Just know, I’m not the one that did it.”
Fatal victim’s mother asked attendees with guns to leave party before shooting unfolded
Taniya Cox, an 18-year-old who was shot twice in her right arm as she fled the party, joined hundreds of residents, told CBS News that Phil and Alexis Dowdell’s mother had ordered anyone with a gun to leave the party just moments before the shooting unfolded.
“The mother said whoever had guns had to get out and they didn’t get out and five minutes later the shooting started,” Ms Cox said.
“I ran in front of a bullet and got shot. I didn’t know what was going on I just saw blood coming out of my arm.”
Authorities said earlier this week that they did not recover any high-powered rifle ammunition at the scene. They did find numerous shell casings used in handguns.
What charges are the suspects facing?
The three men arrested earlier this week have been charged with four counts of reckless murder each.
Tallapoosa County District Attorney Mark Sergist said on Wednesday that more charges are to come.
“We are going to make sure every victim gets justice, not just the deceased,” Mr Sergist said. “Even though these are 16 and 17-year-olds, we are going to charge them as adults.”
Mr Sergist became emotional as he announced the developments, saying some of the victims were children of his longtime friends. He said that grand jurors typically meet in Tallapoosa County in March and September, but he would recall a panel to seek an indictment before September.
Alabama birthday party shooting victim speaks out from hospital bed: ‘Nobody would help me’
Police in smalltown Dadeville, Alabama, are continuing their investigation into the mass shooting at a teenager’s birthday party that left four people dead and a further 32 injured.
The violence broke out at approximately 10.34pm on Saturday at the Mahogany Masterpiece Dance Studio in the downtown area of Dadeville where Alexis Dowdell was celebrating her 16th birthday with friends and family.
The Independent’s Joe Sommerlad has more:
Alabama shooting victim speaks out from hospital bed: ‘Nobody would help me’
‘Nobody would help me so I had to gain my strength and walk outside after being shot’
‘You don’t mess with out kids’
Tallapoosa District Attorney Mark Sergist said more charges are expected to come. The suspects will have a bond hearing within the next 72 hours, and the prosecutors are expected to ask a judge to hold them without bail.
Mr Sergist became emotional as he announced the developments, saying some of the victims were children of his longtime friends. He said that grand jurors typically meet in Tallapoosa County in March and September, but he said he would recall grand jurors to seek an indictment before September
“There’s an uncut cake and unburnt birthday candles that never got lit,” he said. “I know some of these victims personally ... These are my kids, these are our kids, you don’t mess with our kids.”
Who are the victims of the Dadeville shooting?
The tragedy has hit every corner in the small city of just 3,200, Amy Jackson told The Independent on Monday. Ms Jackson’s cousin Keke Nicole Smith is among the victims killed — and she has at least two other loved ones recovering in hospital. Her fiancé’s cousin Corbin Holston was also killed during the attack.
“It’s still fresh. It hasn’t sunk in that this is really happening. It’s a close-knitted community, people know everybody. ‘Your kids are our kids’ type of community,” Ms Jackson said. “And it’s just hard to believe that something like that, that we normally see on TV ... is our reality.”
Read more:
Fourth person arrested for murder
A fourth person has now been charged in connection with the shooting at a Sweet 16 birthday party in Dadeville, Alabama.
Johnny Letron Brown, 20, was arrested on Thursday, the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said.
He is facing four counts of reckless murder.
Unclear how many suspects are being sought
Before police announced the arrest of a fourth suspect on Thursday, there had been no indication that another suspect was being sought.
The same can be said for the news of a third arrest on Wednesday.
The two developments raise a concerning question: How many people are actually being sought as suspects?
Alabama Law Enforcement Agency officials had already faced criticism earlier this week as residents questioned whether the public should have been informed of ongoing threats to the community prior to the first two arrests.
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