Boy, 13, to be tried as adult in Savannah teen’s shooting death
Days after another teenager was fatally shot, Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police said Friday a 13-year-old boy has been charged with murder and will be tried as an adult.
And the victim’s family said the shooting was over $10 and a broken cell phone.
Antonio Griffin, 13, was arrested at his residence Wednesday afternoon and arraigned Friday morning, police said in a statement. He was the third teenager arrested in the May 31 shooting death of 15-year-old Mikell Wright near the Sunrise Villas Apartment complex. Zykieam Redinburg and Tabais Daniels, both 15, have been charged with murder, too. They were arraigned as adults Tuesday in Chatham County Recorder's Court, according to the Savannah Morning News.
According to police, Mikell’s 13-year-old brother was pistol whipped by the teens who killed him.
Wright's family told WTOC-TV in Savannah a group of teens tried to rob the little brother first before shooting Mikell and picking his pockets.
“I always told them, ‘Stick together,’” Mikell’s mother, Brandy Wright, told the news station. “And they stuck together, and they took my baby.”
Mikell’s uncle, Channing Wright, said: “Ten dollars and a cell phone. And my nephew’s no longer here. That’s unreal.”
Recorder's Court Judge Claire Cornwell-Williams set a preliminary hearing for June 25 in the case, according to the Savannah Morning News.
Griffin will remain in custody at the Savannah Regional Youth Detention Center because of his age. Only a Superior Court judge can set bond because he is charged with a capital felony, the newspaper reported.
The investigation into Mikell’s death continues, police said.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters may remain anonymous and qualify for a cash reward.
