4 suspects arrested in shooting that injured 13-year-old girl sleeping in Arlington apartment
Four suspects, including a juvenile, have been arrested in connection with an Arlington apartment complex shooting that injured a sleeping teen earlier this month, police said.
Officers responded to the Arbrook Park apartment complex in the 3700 block of Trailwood Court about 2:15 a.m. on March 10. They found dozens of shell casings in the complex’s parking lot and a bullet hole in an apartment window, according to police.
A 13-year-old girl was shot in the arm by a stray bullet while asleep in her room. She was taken to a hospital by a family member before officers arrived. The girl has since been released from the hospital, police said.
Officers responded to the same apartment complex again on March 12 after someone reported that a man had brandished a gun at a resident. Two men ran from the officers as they approached, police said in a Friday, March 21, news release.
The men — 23-year-old Michael Thomas and 21-year-old Dmarjae Johnson — were detained after a brief foot chase, according to the release. Both were arrested for evading arrest, and Thomas faces an additional charge of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.
Investigators also found evidence to link the suspects to the March 10 shooting, police said, and they have been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Thomas is being held in the Tarrant County Jail on a $65,000 bond. Johnson has since bonded out, according to court records.
Investigators believe two more suspects — a teenage boy and 18-year-old Cortez Atkinson — were involved in the March 10 shooting, according to the release. Both are documented gang members, police said, and detectives obtained arrest warrants for them on one count each of engaging in criminal activity.
The teenage suspect was arrested in Arlington on Tuesday, March 18, by members of the U.S. Marshals North Texas Fugitive Task Force. He was taken to the Tarrant County Juvenile Detention Center, police said, but won’t be publicly identified due to his age.
Atkinson turned himself in Wednesday, March 19, according to the release. Court records show he’s being held in the Tarrant County Jail on a $75,000 bond.
Investigators believe the two groups of suspects were feuding and the shooting was retaliatory, the release states. They were not targeting the teenage victim or anyone else in her apartment.
Arlington Police Chief Al Jones said that he’s proud of the quick work done by the Violent Crime Unit and Gang Specialists to identify the suspects.
“When you show the kind of recklessness and disregard for human life that these individuals did, injuring an innocent teenager, the Arlington Police Department is going to come after you with every available resource and ensure you end up in jail,” Jones said.
