TEXARKANA -- Prosecutors in Miller County have formally charged a Texarkana man accused of shooting the boyfriend of his child's mother at an apartment complex in mid-December.
Denetre Otice Johnson, 25, had been threatening Danyon Noble for a couple of months before Noble was shot twice in the leg Dec. 15 on the grounds of the Willows Apartments on East 35th Street, according to a search warrant affidavit used to create the following account.
A 10-year-old boy who was talking to Noble on a stairway before the shooting told investigators that two men with guns approached and made a threatening comment.
"[The child witness] said that Noble ran up the stairs while yelling, 'Get down, little man,'" the affidavit states.
The boy told investigators he "got down" as Noble directed, seeking refuge in his own apartment when the shooting stopped.
Noble identified Johnson as the person who shot him, authorities said. Investigators got a search warrant for Johnson's cellphone in hopes of identifying the second man described by the young witness.
Deputy prosecutor Connie Mitchell signed off on charges of battery and aggravated assault against Johnson last week. The battery charge concerns the gunshot wounds on Noble's leg. The offense is punishable by five to 20 years in prison. The aggravated assault charge is because Noble and the 10-year-old were put at risk when the shots were fired, officials said.
Johnson is being held in the Miller County jail. Bail is set at $500,000.
State Desk on 02/15/2016