SANTA ROSA, Calif. - Three juvenile suspects were arrested in Santa Rosa on Friday night after allegedly wounding another teenager in a shooting.
The shooting:
Santa Rosa Police Department officers were sent just before 6:35 p.m. to the 1200 block of Temple Avenue on reports of the shooting and found a 14-year-old boy suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to his leg at the scene, according to a department statement.
Officers applied a tourniquet to the boy’s leg, and he was taken to a hospital for treatment, where he was listed in stable condition.
Police learned that the boy and some friends were playing basketball at nearby Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Park when they were approached by "a group of at least five young adult males," the SRPD said.
"The group asked the victim if he was gang- affiliated and tried to provoke a fight, at which time the victim and his friends attempted to run away," the SRPD said in a statement. "One of the suspects then produced a gun and fired multiple shots in the direction of the victim, striking him multiple times in the lower leg. The suspects then fled the area."
The investigation:
An investigation into the shooting revealed three of the suspects fled the scene in a gray 2022 Buick SUV that authorities found was registered to an address in Santa Rosa.
Officers located the Buick in the area of Hearn Avenue and Dowd Drive just after 9:50 p.m., where they conducted a traffic stop and found three suspects inside. Police also reportedly found "clothing consistent with the clothing worn by the suspects as seen in footage from security cameras" inside of the car, along with additional unspecified evidence.
However, police did not find the firearm used in the alleged shooting.
The three suspects in the SUV – who were identified only as 17, 16 and 15-year-old boys – were arrested on suspicion of assault with a firearm, participating in a criminal street gang and unlawful assembly for the purpose of committing a violent act, according to the SRPD.
The Source: Santa Rosa Police Department