Police early Tuesday arrested a Turtle Creek man they say was one of two gunman who fired dozens of shots a day earlier at a 15-year-old boy in Duquesne, grazing his elbow.
Jamar Saunders, 21, fired at the victim around 2:30 p.m. near a grassy lot at on Auriles Street, according to a criminal complaint.
Police said they found more than two dozen bullet casings at the crime scene, which is about seven blocks from the former Duquesne High School.
Allegheny County Police charged Saunders with nine counts, including attempted homicide, aggravated assault and criminal mischief. He was awaiting arraignment Tuesday morning.
Saunders’ complaint provides few details about the second gunmen, who authorities have not named. An Allegheny County Police spokesman declined comment Tuesday.
Video footage from a nearby business showed the two men follow the teen after the pair had been sitting on the porch of an Auriles Street home, the complaint said.
The complaint did not name the victim. School officials in Duquesne, which has been a K-8 district since shuttering its high school in 2007, said the teen went to school in another district.
When the men opened fire, the teen fled.
The teen fell while running and one of the gunmen shot him “at close range” as he tried to get up, the complaint said. The bullet cut the boy’s elbow.
Both gunmen ran from the crime scene, the complaint said. Police, aided by a SWAT team, surrounded a neighboring house on Auriles Street.
A resident of that house, who told authorities no one else lived there, gave consent for “a safety sweep,” the complaint said. Officers later found Saunders inside.
Police said they found a 9mm pistol inside the house in a plastic bin of clothes on the floor. They also found a .40 caliber gun, which had been reported stolen in November.
Those guns matched the 26 shell casings found at the crime scene, the complaint said.
The Duquesne City School District provided few details Monday about the shooting to TribLive news partner WTAE.
Superintendent Sue A. Mariani said an “incident” occurred involving high school students. She stressed that the community was not in danger.
Mariani did not return a phone call or email Tuesday seeking comment.
Saunders’ attorney was not listed Tuesday morning in court records.
