A fifth teenager who surrendered to police in Florida has been charged in connection to a brutal beating videotaped near the scene of one of America’s worst mass shootings, officials said.
Jahmeer Beauziel, 17, turned himself in to police Monday and was charged with felony battery in the attack just outside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland.
Four other teenagers, Caleb Hensley, 17; Sylvester Hicks Jr., 16; Chinua Leefatt, 15; and Jordan Thompson, 16, were arrested last week and charged with the same offense, authorities said. All except Leefatt are students at the school.
The four appeared in court Friday and were released to the custody of their parents and guardians. Beauziel was expected in court Tuesday.
The victim, 18, was slammed to the pavement and beaten on Dec. 12 at North Community Park, which serves as an overflow parking lot for students at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, where 17 students were gunned down on Feb. 14, 2018, by Nikolas Cruz.
Cruz, 25, is serving multiple life sentences without the possibility of parole.
Detectives are seeking a sixth suspect in the beating and are trying to determine a motive for the attack on the 18-year-old victim.
“It was an argument that started in school and unfortunately that led to this event,” Coral Springs police Sgt. Ernesto Bruna said on Tuesday. “But we do not exactly know the motive.”
Police declined to provide details about the victim’s injuries, citing medical privacy laws.
“They were serious injuries but not life threatening,” Bruna said.
Parents and guardians for Beauziel, Hensley, Hicks and Leefatt could not be reached for comment Tuesday. A woman who answered the phone at Thompson’s home said the family would not comment.
David K. Li
Donna Mendell contributed.