Two boys, ages 12 and 13, have been charged with tampering with evidence in connection with the Nov. 3 incident near McDonald’s and the Phoenix Apartments.
They’ve been charged as juveniles in youth court and arresting officers indicated in their affidavits that both should be held at the Cascade County Juvenile Detention Center.
The incident started when a boy punched a 17-year-old boy in the back of head in McDonald’s, causing a fight that moves outside, where more juveniles show up, according to charging documents.
Great Falls Police officers viewed footage of the initial fight from McDonald’s, which also shows several of the juveniles fleeing toward the Phoenix Apartments and the 17-year-old gets in his vehicle and drives toward the group, which appear to be congregated near 18th Street and 9th Avenue South.
The footage does not show the shooting, but a few minutes later, the 17-year-old walks back to McDonald’s with a gunshot to his chest, according to court documents.
As of late Nov. 3, it hadn’t yet been confirmed who shot the 17-year-old, according to the Cascade County Attorney’s Office and court documents.
Detectives spoke to a resident of the Phoenix Apartments who said that she opened the door to banging on her door and the two boys who have been charged were both holding pistols and asking to stash them in her apartment, but she didn’t let them in, according to court documents.
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The witness told investigators that she saw the 17-year-old approaching the group with bear spray and a knife and saw him slash a juvenile’s finger with the knife, but didn’t see the shooting because she’d slammed the door on the two boys trying to stash the guns, according to court documents.
The 17-year-old told officers that he’d been shot by a middle schooler and was transported to the hospital, where medical staff determined the bullet had narrowly missed his heart, but was expected to recover, according to charging documents.
Another witness told officers that the 12-year-old had a gun and he heard the shot but didn’t see the shooting.
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Detectives know the 12-year-old from prior history of being found in possession of handguns during recent incidents GFPD has investigated, according to charging documents.
Patrol officers found blood in the vicinity of the Phoenix Apartments and McDonald’s, which they believed was from the 17-year-old’s gunshot wound and located a knife in the roadway, but hadn’t yet confirmed if it was the knife used in the incident or who it belonged to, according to court documents.
The 17-year-old’s vehicle was also located in the areas and was secured to be processed.
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Neither the 12-year-old or 13-year-old were in possession of firearms when they were located and interviewed and investigators believe they “either concealed or disposed of the firearms they had been in possession of. Based on the statements from witnesses, it is likely that one of these firearms was used to shoot [the 17-year-old]. These firearms are key pieces of evidence that would assist with determining who shot [the 17-year-old] and which firearm shot [the 17-year-old].
