All five suspects arrested in the Hollywood Beach shooting. Here’s what we’ve learned
All five suspects are in police custody Monday night after a week-long hunt stemming from the Memorial Day shooting that injured nine — including a 1-year-old child — in Hollywood Beach.
Lionel Jean-Charles Jr., 18, Ariel Cardahn Paul, 16, and Jordan Burton, 15, face several counts of attempted murder and carrying concealed firearms. Two 18-year-olds, Morgan Deslouches and Keshawn Paul Stewart, have been charged with firearm-related offenses.
Take a look at the timeline of events that culminated in the Hollywood police, the FBI and other law enforcement agencies tracking them down in a seven-day span.
Tragic Memorial Day shooting
Around 6:45 p.m. May 29, police rushed to the scene after an altercation between two groups escalated to gunfire on the Hollywood Beach Broadwalk — prompting thousands of Memorial Day beach-goers to hysterically scatter and duck for cover.
The city’s web cameras captured the chaos that ensued: People running away from the gun shots, a woman trying to cover a kid with her body and others carrying babies and toddlers to safety.
First responders took the victims to Memorial Regional Hospital and Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood. The children’s ages range from 1 to 17 years; the adults’ ages range from 25 to 65, authorities told reporters near the crime scene.
The names of the wounded haven’t been released by officials, but family members of the 1-year-old victim identified him as 16-month-old Amari. Another child injured, 15-year-old Kyan Reddix, was shot four times — two bullets to the stomach and two to the chest, his mother Latroya Stone told 7News. Two of the people shot were part of one of the groups involved in the altercation.
Two suspects arrested
Two 18-year-old men were arrested hours after the shooting a few blocks away from the crime scene on the Hollywood Beach Broadwalk near Johnson Street. Investigators also recovered five guns of which two were stolen from Miami-Dade County and Texas respectively, Hollywood police said the following day in a news release.
READ MORE: Two arrested in Hollywood Beach shooting. Businesses say security a growing concern
Morgan Deslouches, a Hollywood resident, is facing charges of grand theft of a firearm, carrying a concealed weapon and removing or altering the serial number from a gun after police say they found a black Smith & Wesson inside a bag hanging from his left shoulder. Keshawn Paul Stewart of Dania Beach was arrested on a charge of carrying a concealed firearm after officers said they spotted a fully loaded semi-automatic 9mm handgun inside a backpack he was carrying.
Stewart and Deslouches have since been released on bails of $15,000 and $20,000 respectively after pleading not guilty, court records show. A judge ordered Deslouches not to possess any firearms or ammo as well as to not contact the victims or any other person involved in the shooting. The same judge also told Steward not to return to the area of the shooting and to avoid contacting other co-defendants.
Attorneys for Stewart and Deslouches didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
READ MORE: Two arrested in Hollywood Beach shooting that left 9 wounded on Memorial Day
On May 30, the day after the shooting, authorities announced that three more suspects were on the loose, releasing video surveillance that showed them fleeing from the scene.
Third arrest
A third suspect involved in the Hollywood Beach Memorial Day shooting was captured Saturday afternoon by Hollywood police and U.S. Marshals, officials said.
Jordan Burton is facing one count of attempted murder in the first degree, eight counts of attempted murder in the second degree and one count of carrying a concealed firearm.
READ MORE: A third arrest has been made in the Hollywood Beach shooting
Investigators say Burton, Lionel Jean-Charles Jr., Ariel Cardahn Paul and others approached the other group before words were exchanged and a fight ensued. Burton, police say, appeared to brandish a handgun and fire at the other group.
Attorney information for the three suspects wasn’t available Tuesday afternoon.
Fourth arrest
Ariel Cardahn Paul was taken into custody by Hollywood police Sunday night. He faces one count of attempted murder in the first degree, eight counts of attempted murder in the second degree and one count of carrying a concealed firearm.
According to investigators, he whipped out a silver-colored handgun and, like Burton, “appeared to fire indiscriminately” at the opposing crew as well as into the crowd before both groups fled in various directions.
READ MORE: Fourth arrest made in the Hollywood Beach shooting
Two 9mm handguns were recovered under the stairwell of a nearby apartment building where Jordan and Stewart were seen, investigators say. A black Smith & Wesson .380 handgun was found nearby in the bushes behind a tiki hut.
The Broward State Attorney’s Office told the Miami Herald on Tuesday that prosecutors will “review everything before making any charging decisions, whether the suspects are adults or juveniles.”
Fifth — and final — arrest
The last suspect on the run was tracked down Monday afternoon by Hollywood police. Lionel Jean-Charles Jr. faces the same attempted murder and weapon charges as Jordan Burton and Ariel Cardahn Paul. The Hallandale Beach man remained behind bars at Broward County’s Main Jail as of Tuesday night, records show.
Investigators say surveillance footage captured Jean-Charles Jr. as he fled from police northbound on North Ocean Drive, where he then turned east on Cleveland Street, removed his yellow hoodie and threw it away.
READ MORE: Fifth — and final — suspect arrested in the Hollywood Beach shooting that left 9 hurt
Jean-Charles Jr., police say, “unprovoked, willfully and intentionally produced a handgun with the intent to murder” one of the males from the other group — while “simultaneously endangering the public and innocent bystanders.”
Hollywood mayor thanks police, public
Hollywood Mayor Josh Levy on Tuesday thanked the community “for assisting law enforcement and showing that we stand united in not tolerating such behavior in our cities and public spaces.”
“The collaborative response that we saw from the public, law enforcement, good Samaritans, paramedics and medical professionals highlights the power of unity when we stand united against crime and come to the aid of those in need,” he said in a Facebook post. “Moving forward, let us continue to support one another, remain vigilant against any form of criminal activity, and foster a culture of care and responsibility”
Levy also had a message for parents, teachers and other adults.
“It is crucial that we instill in our youth the understanding that if they witness or hear about any situation that may pose harm to someone, their responsibility is to confide in a trusted adult, whether it be a teacher, a parent, police or any reliable person,” he said. “Keeping our community safe requires the active participation of each and every one of us, and by empowering our youth with this knowledge, we are fostering a culture of care and vigilance.”
Miami Herald staff reporters Grethel Aguila and Devoun Cetoute contributed to this report.
