D.C. police made an arrest in the fatal shooting of an 11-year-old boy July 4 in Southeast and are looking for four other suspects in the homicide case.
Police arrested 18-year-old Daryle Bond Thursday afternoon and charged him with first-degree murder while armed. Police also obtained arrest warrants for 19-year-old Carlo General, 25-year-old Marcel Gordon and 22-year-old Christian Wingfield. Police are working to secure an arrest warrant for a fifth suspect, Chief Peter Newsham said.
Davon McNeal, a middle school student, stepped out of his mother’s car just as gunfire erupted among a group of men. The child was an innocent bystander. Police do not believe the shooting was related to his family, Newsham said.
“We will not tolerate this violence,” Mayor Muriel Bowser said. “Davon should be with his family today.”
Davon’s mother, Crystal McNeal, works as a violence interrupter through a city contractor, said Del McFadden, director of the D.C. Office of Neighborhood Safety and Engagement. The workers aim to prevent violence before it starts.
Davon's mother had been devoted for some time to preventing violence in the exact neighborhood where her son was killed. They moved out of the neighborhood themselves about a year ago. Davon’s grandfather John Ayala is involved in violence prevention too. He started a local chapter of the Guardian Angels.
At least 20 children attended a family-oriented anti-violence cookout July 4 that Crystal McNeal organized, McFadden said. After the event, Davon headed from his mother’s car to his aunt’s house to pick up a phone charger. That’s when the shooting started, Ayala said.
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“In a matter of seconds, just stepping out the car, they heard gunshots. When they heard gunshots, he drops,” he said.
McNeal’s mother thought her young son was taking cover.
“He was actually shot. The mother held him,” Ayala said.
Five men in a black sedan sped off.
Officers who were nearby were flagged down at about 9:20 p.m., Newsham said. Davon was rushed from the 1400 block of Cedar Street SE to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The 11-year-old loved football and dreamed of playing in the NFL. Family members said he talked about it all the time.
Hundreds attended a vigil for Davon Thursday evening, holding candles in his memory and releasing balloons into the sky, some in the shape of the number three, Davon's football jersey number.
Bond has a violent criminal history, Newsham said. The other three suspects police have warrants for have gun-related criminal history.
General and Wingfield were arrested in the spring as past convicted felons in possession of firearms, Newsham said. They were released into the community. Wingfield had a curfew and was issued a GPS device, which Newsham said was cut off shortly after the homicide.
“Now these guys have taken the life of an 11-year-old boy, and that is tragic,” Newsham said.
Newsham said the apartment complex has a good surveillance video system, which aided in the investigation.
Anyone with information about the case can call police at 202-727-9099 or text information anonymously to the department's tip line at 50411. There is a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
