The Little Rock high school student who managed to evade police while handcuffed in an afternoon-long manhunt Tuesday afternoon surrendered to police early Wednesday on several warrants, including attempted capital murder.
Demontae Berry, 16, of 4815 Mabelvale Pike, was arrested and charged as an adult with aggravated robbery and felony theft of property, as well as criminal attempt to commit capital murder in connection with a Nov. 25 shooting that left a 22-year-old man shot and unconscious in his car, according to court officials.
B e rry, who wa s also charged with third-degree escape, a Class A misdemeanor, after Tuesday’s search, remained in jail early Wednesday night and was scheduled to appear in Little Rock District Court this morning.
According to police reports, Wieland Beck called 911 at 2:57 p.m. on Nov. 25 from the parking lot of Shark’s at 3323 Fair Park and told dispatchers he had just been robbed and shot.
Arrest reports said Beck was shot at least once in the right side and “went unconscious while talking to 9-1-1” operators.
By the time officers reached the business lot, Beck was unconscious in his car and officers had to break out the driver- and passenger-side windows to give aid.
According to police officials, Beck had been in touch with his shooter and planned to meet him at that Fair Park address when the man robbed and shot him.
For several months, Beck’s shooter remained at large, until detectives called the department’s school resource officer working at Hall High School and asked the officer to detain Berry until they could meet and question him in Beck’s shooting.
Department spokesman Lt. Sidney Allen said he couldn’t offer details about the investigation or Berry’s involvement in the November shooting because of the suspect’s age until “he appears in court,” but he said Berry’s escape from custody at Hall High School happened very quickly.
Within minutes of being handcuffed and placed in the Hall High School officer’s office, the teen was able to manipulate his handcuffs from the back to front, and bolted from the campus.
Allen said how the teen was able to escape supervision until detectives arrived is now being determined by internal investigators.
He said he didn’t know what, if anything, the school-resource officer did to facilitate Berry’s escape.
Allen declined to release the name of the officer but said that the resource officer has not been relieved of duty.
In the past, failure to secure a suspect has prompted several types of disciplinary actions including suspensions.
Officers searched Tuesday throughout the neighborhoods around Hall High School and the campuses at Hall and nearby Forest Heights Middle School were briefly locked down.
Arkansas, Pages 8 on 01/23/2014