15-year-old shot Sunday in West Point, two men arrested
Published 10:06 am Monday, February 25, 2019
WEST POINT — Two Lanett men have been arrested and charged with criminal attempted murder after a 15-year-old female was shot Sunday afternoon at a West Point Housing Authority in the 1400 block of East 12th Street.
Joshua Dowdell, 19 and Stefon Trammell, 19, are in custody in Chambers County Jail and Troup County Jail, respectively, on the attempted murder and aggravated assault charges. Dowdell, who has been identified as the shooter, is also facing a charge of possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony.
At about 3:45 p.m. Sunday, West Point Police received a call about a 15-year-old female being shot in the abdomen and flown to the Mid-South Medical Center. According to the West Point Captain Robert Fawley Monday, the girl is in stable condition.
He said there were 30 to 50 people at a basketball court at the housing complex engaged in different activities when a vehicle pulled up and fired a weapon into an open crowd, striking the juvenile.
A news release from the police department said Dowdell fired four to six shots into the large crowd of people. However, Fawley said the police do not believe the girl was the intended target and the reason behind the shooting or its intended target is not known as of Monday.
The vehicle was identified from a combination of security cameras from the housing authority and eyewitness statements. It was described as a silver, four-door Buick or Hyundai.
About four hours later, Fawley said Trammell and his grandmother entered the Lanett Police Department to make a report about death threats he was receiving from an unknown individual. After briefly speaking with Lanett Police, he said the threats stemmed from an incident in West Point, so the Lanett Police instructed him to talk to West Point.
Fawley said Trammell and his grandmother drove to the West Point Police Department in the same vehicle that was described as being involved in the shooting earlier that day.
After Trammell met with authorities about the death threats, he was confronted with the security footages of the shooting. After some time, he told police the name of the shooter. He was then taken into custody on the criminal attempted murder and aggravated assault charges because he was complicit in the crime, Fawley said. He is currently incarcerated in the Troup County Jail.
Later that night at about 11 p.m., Fawley said the Lanett and West Point Police Departments found Dowdell in his residence in Lanett. As of Monday, Dowdell was incarcerated in the Chambers County Jail awaiting extradition to Troup County, according to Fawley.
He said there is a possibility of additional charges for the suspects. The police have a third suspect in mind but have not fully identified that person.
The police are asking anybody with information or if they have witnessed the incident to contact them at (706) 645-3525 or the Troup County Crime Stoppers at (706) 812-1000.