Ga. Shooting Kills Teen, 10 Arrested-My Agency

[Guest guest]

Yes this is my department. You would have thought the world was coming to an

end with all the media attention. But it was a great arrest. Out of the 5

that are being charged with Murder, 2 are 16 yoa females. The media was

relentless in their pursuit for information all night long. They were camped

out most of the night in front of our building and kept calling trying to get

someone to slip up (we were great . We were proud of our guys for getting

all the information together to make the arrest about 18 hrs after the call

came in. There will be 9 lead investigators on the case, but many more than

that were in on the arrest. Thats all the info I can tell for now.

Kudos to my folks for doing such a great job !!

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Ga. Shooting Kills Teen, 10 Arrested

By KRISTEN WYATT

..c The Associated Press

Associated Press Writer

NORCROSS, Ga. (AP) - Ten people were arrested in connection with the killing

of a teen-age girl and the wounding of a second in a gang-related shooting at

a suburban soccer complex, police said Tuesday.

Five of the 10 were charged with murder and the others faced lesser charges,

including obstruction of justice, Gwinnett County police said. Three of the

10 are 16-year-old girls, including two of those charged with murder, said

Gwinnett County police spokesman Gilson.

All 10 were arrested during the night at a house in Lawrenceville, about 10

miles east of Norcross, and are believed to be members of a gang called Vatos

Locos, Gilson said. The gang name is a slang phrase translated as ``Crazy

Boys'' or ``Crazy Guys.''

``Gangs are not on a prevalent level, but we do have knowledge of gang

activity'' in the county northeast of Atlanta, Gilson said.

District Attorney Danny Porter said authorities were looking into whether the

shootings in Pinckneyville Park in Norcross were part of a gang initiation.

He said he wasn't sure whether the victims were part of the gang.

Mechelle Marie , 18, of Atlanta, was shot to death, and Robin Rainey,

17, was found unconscious with a gunshot wound in the neck. Rainey, who had

stumbled to the park's only pay phone to dial 911, was hospitalized at

Gwinnett Medical Center. The hospital would not release her condition

Tuesday.

The victims had been living with friends, and their parents weren't sure why

they were in the park, Gilson said.

Gilson wouldn't say what led police to the suspects or to the Lawrenceville

house. He said no weapons have been recovered.

A neighbor, Prioletti, said the occupants of the two-bedroom duplex in

Lawrenceville had lived there only a few months.

``I heard partying going on during the weekends and all through the week,''

he said. ``It was always a constant party. It seemed like they never slept.''

Residents of the middle-class suburb say the park is quiet at night and is

seldom frequented by teens, but is packed for weekend soccer games.

``I thought this was such a great community. This just shocked me,'' said

Lori VanBuskirk, a mother of two who has coached a soccer team in the park.

``You might expect something like this in other areas but not here, not in

Gwinnett County.''

Gwinnett County is one of Atlanta's largest suburbs with about 500,000

residents, many of them living in middle-class subdivisions within 25 miles

of downtown. The county had 36 murders in 1999.

The county's Hispanic population has grown more than 200 percent since 1990.

Census figures estimated Gwinnett's 1999 Hispanic population at 26,731, but

demographers say the actual number may be higher.

Charged with murder and aggravated assault were Nolasco, 22, of

Doraville; Celerino Palma, 21, of Lawrenceville; Bailu -Bonilla,

19, of Lawrenceville, and two 16-year-old girls whose names weren't released.

Charged with obstruction of justice were Anger Agalon Bibiano, 21, of

Roswell; Servando Vazquez, 22, address not known; Ranuifo Butus Nino, 18, of

Chamblee, and Graziano, 22, of Atlanta. Another 16-year-old girl

was charged with probation violation.