photo courtesy of Brevard County Sheriff’s Office
A teenage boy, Diante Stokes, has allegedly shot a younger 15-year-old boy after they both became romantically involved with a 35-year-old woman. The shooting occurred on Saturday, March 4, in a Florida apartment complex, both Stokes and the older woman were arrested this week for their involvement in the crimes.
According to Florida Today, Stokes was charged with attempted murder, one count of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and two parole violations. The young boy is being held in Florida’s Brevard County jail without bond.
The 35-year-old woman, identified as Chanel Willaims, was arrested on Sunday for her part in the shooting after investigators found that both boys were romantically involved with Williams. She’s being charged with two counts of child neglect with great bodily harm, causing a child to commit an act of delinquency, unsafe storage of a firearm, and furnishing a weapon to a minor.
According to reports, the shooting victim is in the hospital in critical condition after witnesses heard nearly a dozen gunshots fired the night of the shooting. Another witness claimed that Stokes and the 15-year-old victim had altercations in the past with each other and that Stokes had even threatened him prior to the incident. Stokes allegedly shot the victim twice, in the chest and the head, before driving away. The unnamed victim was treated on the scene by emergency workers before being airlifted to the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and Women in Orlando, where he’s receiving further treatment.
Investigators later discovered that Williams supplied at least one handgun to the younger boys and may have had sexual contact with the minor.
RPD Deputy Chief Donna Seyferth said, “The female that we arrested had a romantic relationship with both the suspect and the 15-year-old,”
“It is a very confusing case. We’ve got a guardian that’s not a guardian. We’ve got a 35-year-old female that has been with both our suspect and our victim, one of them being a juvenile. It has taken a lot of investigative work to get where we are.”
Williams is being held on a $45,000 bond and is not allowed contact with any minors under the age of 18 until the trial is concluded.