Police say 3rd teen tied to shooting

Boy linked to Springdale drive-by held on drug charge

SPRINGDALE -- Police say a 17-year-old boy arrested Thursday on a drug charge is connected to a drive-by shooting two weeks ago in Springdale.

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Separately, Rogers police have discovered the gun used in the drive-by shooting was stolen from a Rogers home in January, according to a March 20 probable-cause affidavit in Benton County Circuit Court.

Derek Hudson, spokesman for Springdale police, said the teen was arrested at 10:25 p.m. Thursday at 115 Pursell St.

Police have not released the names of two other boys, ages 15 and 17, arrested March 14 in connection with the drive-by shooting at 105 Pierce Ave. because they are minors, Hudson has said.

Police had been looking for the 17-year-old arrested Thursday for two weeks but would not say how he is involved in the drive-by shooting.

The teen has not been arrested in connection with the shooting, Hudson said in an email. Instead, police found marijuana on the boy, who was arrested in connection with possession of a controlled substance, failure to appear for a trial in Springdale and a warrant for felony aggravated assault, according to a news release Friday.

The drive-by shooting happened the same night Springdale police say Fabian Rodriguez, 18, was fatally shot by Hector Saul Ramos, 17, outside Ramos' residence at 32 Applegate Drive in Springdale.

Pierce Avenue and Applegate Drive are only a few blocks apart, and police say the shootings may be connected to gang activity.

Ramos has been charged as an adult with first-degree murder, two counts of first-degree battery and misdemeanor possession of marijuana.

According to the Benton County affidavit, police believe the same gun used in the drive-by shooting was stolen by a fourth teenager, Luis Angel Perea. Perea traded the gun to a person in Springdale for a tattoo gun, court records show.

Rogers police arrested Perea, 17, on March 19 in connection to a Jan. 12 burglary in which jewelry and a .22 Ruger revolver were reported stolen, according to the affidavit.

Perea was also suspected in other residential burglaries and crimes, court records show. After investigating, Rogers police linked him to the missing weapon used in the drive-by shooting, according to the affidavit.

A person who said he burglarized homes with Perea told police that he took Perea to Springdale, where Perea traded the Ruger for a tattoo gun, according to the probable-cause affidavit.

On March 15, the day after the drive-by shooting, police found a Ruger on a Springdale sidewalk, court documents show. Police believe that gun is the same one used in the drive-by shooting and the same one stolen in January, according to the affidavit.

Hudson confirmed in an email Friday that the gun used in the drive-by shooting was a .22 Ruger.

The gun was sent to the Arkansas Crime Laboratory for ballistics testing, according to the affidavit.

Perea faces numerous other felonies and misdemeanors for suspected criminal activity, according to the affidavit.

He is charged with four counts of residential burglary; 14 counts of breaking or entering; four counts of theft of property; two counts of theft by receiving; and 12 counts of misdemeanor theft of property and misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance.

NW News on 03/28/2015

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