Suspect identified as 19-year-old in Richmond high school graduation shooting

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The suspect in the Richmond, Virginia high school graduation shooting has been identified as 19-year-old Amari Ty’Jon Pollard.

Mr Polland was arraigned on Wednesday (7 June) morning in Richmond General District Court on two counts of second-degree murder according to court records from the Office of the Sheriff of the City of Richmond.

Court records did not list an attorney for Mr Pollard but the teenager said he intends to hire one, according to the Associated Press.

He is currently being held without bond and further charges are still pending.

In a press conference on Tuesday evening, Richmond Police Department interim police chief Rick Edwards said the suspect was detained following the shooting after attempting to flee on foot.

Security officers from the Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) detained Mr Polland before he was taken into police custody.

The shooting took place around 5.15pm local time on Tuesday at Monroe Park which is on VCU’s campus. Hundreds of people were gathered in the open-space area after watching students from Huguenot High School participate in a graduation ceremony.

The ceremony took place at Altria Theatre.

One recent graduate, 18-year-old Shawn Jackson is among the victims of the shooting. Jackson and his step-father, 36-year-old Lorenzo Smith, were shot and killed.

Five other people suffered gunshot wounds as a result of the shooting.

Others were injured as a result of the chaotic stampede that occurred when gunshots erupted after the graduation ceremony, including a nine-year-old girl who was struck by a vehicle.

Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney called the shooting a: “horrific, traumatic and senseless act of gun violence” in a press conference on Wednesday.

“There must be accountability for the violence the individual who committed this senseless and cowardly act must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” Mr Stoney said.

Mr Edwards asked members of the public to submit any tips they have that could help the investigation as well as videos or photos from the shooting.