19-year-old killed in WSSU campus shooting during homecoming weekend, suspect charged
One person was killed and three others wounded in two separate shootings at Winston-Salem State University on Saturday. A 20-year-old non-student has been charged with murder.
Two shootings at Winston-Salem State University leave one dead during homecoming
One person was killed and three others wounded after two separate shootings broke out on the campus of Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) on Saturday night, nbcnews.com reports. Police have made at least one arrest in connection with the fatal incident.
Ziyaire Antonyo Spinks, 20, was charged with murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury, and felony possession of a firearm on an educational campus, Winston-Salem police announced Sunday. Spinks is being held without bond.
The first shooting was reported at 9:46 p.m. Officers who responded after hearing gunshots found Peyton Izaia Patterson, 19, with a gunshot wound. Emergency medical services and officers attempted lifesaving measures, but Patterson did not survive. A second victim, Alyssa Janae Ellerbee, 19, was treated at a hospital and later released.
Jason Swaim, assistant chief of the Winston-Salem police Field Services Bureau, said the shooting stemmed from an altercation between two groups. An additional person, Cequon Warren Brower, 18, was arrested in connection with fighting at the scene. Swaim confirmed that neither Spinks nor Brower were students at the university.
A second shooting was reported on campus at 10:22 p.m. Officers found two people with gunshot wounds. A vehicle linked to that incident was later stopped by West Side police officers, but no arrests had been made in that case as of Sunday afternoon, Swaim said. Police determined the two shootings were separate, unrelated incidents.
Emergency services audio obtained by NBC News showed officers reporting that one victim had sustained a gunshot wound to the head. A separate recording captured an officer requesting a second ambulance.
Court records show Spinks had two previous cases pending in North Carolina prior to Saturday's events. He faces a pending case in Randolph County on charges of carrying a concealed weapon and marijuana possession, stemming from a March arrest. He was also indicted in October on charges of felony conspiracy to commit robbery and robbery with a dangerous weapon in Guilford County, relating to an incident alleged to have occurred last year. The indictment was filed on 5 October, according to court records. The lawyer representing Spinks in the March case told NBC News on Sunday that he was unaware of the new charges.
Saturday was homecoming game day at the historically Black university, with the WSSU Rams facing the Fayetteville State Broncos earlier in the afternoon.
University Police Chief Amir Henry assured the public that the campus had been secured. He noted that homecoming was typically a time for the university community to gather in "shared pride and connection."
"Tragically, this year, this celebration has been overshadowed by the loss of life and the injuries resulting from two separate shootings on our campus," Henry said.
All remaining homecoming activities scheduled for Sunday were cancelled, including an event at Emmanuel Baptist Church. University Chancellor Bonita J. Brown announced the cancellations in a statement, in which she expressed condolences to the family of the deceased and said she was praying for the recovery of the injured.
Brown also acknowledged that members of the campus community "may have witnessed or experienced things that no one should have to endure," and urged students and staff to make use of the university's counselling services.
"Throughout our history, Winston-Salem State University has faced challenges, but we have always found strength in one another," Brown wrote. "That is what it means to be part of the Ramily and to be Ram strong."
Source: Google News MT