Metro

US Man Charged For Shooting Black Teen At His Front Door

Published

3 years ago

April 18, 2023

Prosecutors in the US state of Missouri announced felony charges on Monday against an 85-year-old white man after he allegedly shot and severely wounded a Black teenager who mistakenly rang his doorbell.

Ralph Paul Yarl, 16, was in critical condition after he was shot twice, once in the head, last Thursday night when he rang the doorbell at the wrong house while trying to pick up his twin brothers from a friend’s home nearby.

Outrage rose over the case throughout the weekend, after it was revealed that the homeowner had been released without charges following 24 hours in custody.

However on Monday, Clay County prosecutor Zachary Thompson announced that the homeowner, identified as Andrew Lester, 85, had been charged with one count of felony assault in the first degree and one count of armed criminal action, also a felony. His bail was set at $200,000.

The boy’s aunt, Faith Spoonmoore, said on a GoFundMe campaign that her nephew was a gifted student who dreamed of studying chemical engineering.

Deadly shootings are a regular occurrence in the United States, a country of around 330 million people that is awash with an estimated 400 million guns.

But Yarl’s case has sparked a particular outcry as the nation continues to grapple with a long history of missing accountability for violence against African Americans.

The White House announced Monday evening that President Joe Biden had spoken by phone to Yarl “and shared his hope for a swift recovery.”

Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves said at a Sunday night press conference that the information at the time “does not say that it’s racially motivated, that’s still an active investigation.”

“But as a chief of police, I do recognize the racial components of this case. I do recognize and understand the community’s concern.”

Charges were also filed Monday in a similar case in New York state, though the victim of the shooting Saturday night did not survive.

Police in New York state said a 20-year-old woman, identified as Kaylin Gillis, had been fatally shot by a homeowner on Saturday night when she showed up with three others at the wrong address when trying to find a friend’s house.

“While they were leaving the residence after they determined that they were at the wrong house, the subject came out on his porch for whatever reason and fired two shots, one of which struck the vehicle that Kaylin was in,” said Jeffrey Murphy, the sheriff of Washington County, where the shooting took place.

The 65-year-old homeowner who allegedly fired the shots was arrested Monday and charged with premeditated murder, the sheriff said.

Meanwhile on Saturday in the state of Alabama, four people were killed and at least 28 others, mostly teenagers, were wounded in a shooting at a birthday party.

Metro

16-year-old Killed As NDLEA Operatives, Drug Barons Clash In Edo

Published

9 hours ago

October 30, 2025

Editor

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Edo State Command, and drug barons reportedly clashed at Okpuje, Uzeba community in Owan West Local Government Area, leading to the death of a 16 -years -old boy, identified as Emmanuel Monday George.

Two others identified as God’spower Omage (20 years) and Ajayi Irobia (54 years), were said to have sustained serious injuries during the gun duel which reportedly happened on Monday.

Mitchell Ofoyeju, state commander of the NDLEA disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen in Benin on Thursday.

Ofoyeju said that one of its officers sustained an injury after being struck on the hand with a sharp object.

Recall that Army and NDLEA officers were recently attacked by drug barons in the agrarian community, notable for cannabis cultivation.

Metro

JUST IN: Fire Guts Store At Abuja Mall

Published

12 hours ago

October 30, 2025

Editor

A fire incident occurred at the Jabi Lake Mall, Abuja in the early hours of Thursday.

The cause of the fire, which started around 3am, could not be ascertained as of the time of filing this report.

It was gathered that only the Adidas Sports shop was affected.

It was further gathered that firefighters from the Federal Fire Service, the Berger Fire Department, and the FCT Fire Service, as well as police officers, were deployed to the scene.

A resident of Jabi, Saliu, who informed our correspondent of the incident, said the fire had been contained.

He said, “Around 3am., this morning, there was a fire incident at the Jabi Lake Mall in Abuja. No loss of life or injury was recorded. Only the Adidas Sports shop was affected by the fire.”

The FCT police spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, confirmed the incident to The PUNCH.

Adeh said police officers were deployed to the location to secure the area and prevent looting.

“We received a distress call at about 3:40 a.m. We immediately deployed our men there to secure the place and prevent any breach of public order,” she said.

Metro

JUST IN: Hausa, Benin Youths Clash Over Killing Of Suspected Yahoo Boy

Published

1 day ago

October 29, 2025

Editor

Photo: file copy

Several persons were on Wednesday night injured in a clash between Hausa and Benin youths, in Ogheghe community, Egor Local Government Area of Edo State, over the killing of a suspected yahoo boy identified as Chizi Benz.

According to sources, Chizi Benz was said to have been stabbed to death by a Hausa youth over a sour deal.

Though details of the deal were not available as at press time, the killing of Chidi Benz sparked outrage as youths stormed the streets with dangerous weapons in a revenge mission.

According to sources, many ‘Abokis’ were injured in a reprisal attack while others fled for safety.

News of the killing was to have spread to nearby communities of Uwelu along the Siluko Axis, forcing Hausa youths who do petty trading and rides okada closed their businesses and fled for safety.

According to sources, policemen who were deployed to the area fired tear gas to disperse the angry youths.

Edo Police Spokesman, Moses Yamu, who confirmed the incident, promised to send a detailed statement.

He was yet to do so as at press time.