Mesa high school football player fatally shot by classmate, police say
MESA, Ariz. - Mesa Police officials say an arrest has been made in connection with the shooting death of a high school football player.
In a brief update, police officials say 18-year-old Peter "PJ" Clabron III is being booked into jail for his alleged involvement in the death of Jeremiah Aviles.
Aviles ,18, was found dead on May 7. According to police, officers responded to reports of a shooting just before 2:00 a.m. at a home near Gilbert Road and University Drive. Aviles was found dead inside the home when officers arrived.
Aviles was a student at Red Mountain High School. The school's football team posted a tribute to Aviles on Facebook, writing "Our hearts are with the Aviles family this day and always. We mourn the loss of Jeremiah’s beautiful spirit and honor his life in the days ahead."
Court documents reveal new details on deadly shooting
Mesa Police officials have released court documents that were filed for Clabron.
In the documents, investigations state that Aviles was shot in Clabron's bedroom.
"[Clabron] and one witness were present at the time of the shooting. During the initial investigation, [Clabron] and the witness made false statements about what occurred leading up to the shooting, as well as what occurred after," read a portion of the documents. "The original witness later came forward to investigators unsolicited, and admitted that the statement they gave to investigations on scene was false."
Peter Clabron III, arrested in connection with Jeremiah Aviles' death
In their statement, Mesa Police officials said Clabron and the witness attempted to point blame at another person who was not in the bedroom during the incident.
Eventually, investigators say they got a search warrant, and found a gun in the corner of Clabron's bedroom, while finding fired case cartridges nearby. A search warrant was also executed on Clabron's phone, which found videos showing Clabron pointing the gun at the victim several times prior to and leading up to the shooting.
Clabron, according to the court documents, later surrendered himself to police. He is accused of manslaughter, as well as two counts of unlawful discharge of firearm, one of which involved an incident that happened on May 6 where Clabron allegedly fired a handgun into the air from the back of a truck.
A judge has set a $350,000 cash-only bond for Clabron. Should his family posts the bond, Clabron will be confined to house arrest.
Victim's family speaks out
On May 12, after Clabron was arrested, Aviles' family members are speaking out about what happened.
"From what we’ve been told, it wasn’t planned. It was just an accident that happened," said Aviles' brother, Omar Aviles. "Being a football teammate, I know that he was definitely shaken by that."
In court, however, prosecutors claimed the shooting was not merely accidental.
"There’s further information the young adults were smoking and drinking when this happened," said an attorney.
During Clabron's court appearance, Aviles' mother was emotional, and lashed out.
"You went home to your mother," Aviles' mother was heard saying. "My baby didn't come home from your sleepover."
Omar, however, says he is forgiving.
"I forgive the kid. That’s what Jeremiah would want. Wouldn’t want me holding a grudge against his teammate who made a mistake," said Omar.
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