On Wednesday, additional information surfaced regarding the carjacking that was attempted, resulting in the death of a 13-year-old and the arrest of a 12-year-old.
During his initial court hearing on Wednesday, the 12-year-old was presented before a judge, who disclosed that it was his own mother who reported him to the authorities.
A D.C. police detective stated that two juveniles, aged 12 and 13, approached a car parked on D Street NW at approximately 10 p.m. on Saturday. The vehicle was occupied by an off-duty security officer from the U.S. Marshals Service.
During the testimony, the detective revealed that the surveillance footage displayed both suspects approaching the car with their hands on their waistbands, implying that they were carrying weapons. According to the detective, the 13-year-old approached from the passenger side, while the 12-year-old approached from the driver’s side.
According to authorities, Vernard Toney Jr., a 13-year-old, was fatally shot by the officer who got out of his car. The officer was sitting in the passenger seat at the time of the incident. The 12-year-old was also present and ran off, as captured on surveillance video.
The 12-year-old suspect was apprehended and charged with armed carjacking after his mother recognized him in a photograph released by the police. The authorities announced the arrest on Tuesday, putting an end to the search for the culprit.
Authorities discovered the clothing the boy was wearing in the surveillance video during their search of his bedroom. However, they were unable to recover any weapons either at the site of the carjacking attempt or during the search of the boy’s residence.
During the court hearing on Wednesday, the 12-year-old was asked to identify himself, however, he provided false information to the judge by claiming that he is 13 years old.
During the hearing held on Wednesday, it was revealed that the 12-year-old had a previous record of anger management issues, which dates back to when he was just five years old. It is noteworthy that he had not encountered any legal trouble before and this was his first arrest by the police.
The youth services center in D.C. was ordered by the judge to detain him until his next court hearing, despite his plea of not being involved.
On Tuesday, the D.C. police reported that the security officer who shot Toney, the 13-year-old, was assisting with the investigation and had legally owned the gun used in the incident.
According to a letter sent out by the principal to families, Toney was a bright, witty and gifted seventh-grade student at Kelly Miller Middle School located in Northeast D.C. In light of his passing, counseling services were made available to his peers.
According to two individuals who are acquainted with the case, Toney was taken into custody in May for his involvement in several armed carjackings that occurred in Southeast D.C. The shocking detail is that he was only 12 years old at the time. It remains uncertain what the outcome of the cases was.
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