Howard County Teen Arrested In Fatal Inner Harbor Triple Shooting; Police Increase Patrols For Summer
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Baltimore police have expanded patrols at the Inner Harbor after the frightening triple shooting that killed one teenager and injured two others over Memorial Day weekend, leaving the popular area covered with crime tape and evidence markers.
17-year-old Neal Mack III lost his life, and now police have arrested another teenager for his murder.
Here's what we know from police: The suspect is a 15-year-old from Howard County who was taken into custody at his home there Thursday morning by a warrant task force. Police have not named him. He is charged as an adult.
Authorities have not revealed the motive.
Police previously released surveillance images in the case of two boys riding on a blue moped. Police later confirmed the suspect arrested is one of the two pictured.
"We're just glad that our detectives were able to work and work with school police and officers and identify and now we have someone in custody," Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott told WJZ Friday. "It's a tragic situation. You are talking about a young life lost. You're talking about other young lives impacted by trauma and a young person committing it. It just shows us that we have so much work to do when it comes to building young people in Baltimore and beyond."
Mayor Scott said the "issue is really greater than one place and it's a really a societal thing that we have to talk about. Now we're going to go through the rest of the criminal justice process, and we're hopeful that justice is brought to bear so folks can be held responsible for their actions. Taking a life and harming people is something that you should be held responsible for."
The violence has not let up with almost 160 murders in the city so far this year.
Just this week, two men were shot on Redwood near Calvert just two blocks from the Inner Harbor.
Earlier this month, police released their summer crime plan, which includes more weekend patrols in the Inner Harbor and as many as 29 uniformed officers and supervisors stationed throughout the area on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
You can read the strategy in full here.
WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren saw visible patrols along the water Friday. One longtime Baltimore resident who declined to give his name told Hellgren, "You have young teenagers running around doing these things and more than anything, it's saddening." He said young people need more activities to stay out of trouble.
The Inner Harbor has seen an exodus of businesses, but one tourist, André Martin said he believed stores would come back and as for safety, "I feel comfortable. I don't feel unsafe at all."
The teen who was gunned down, Neal Mack, was a youth intern for Tendea Family, an organization founded after the death of Freddie Gray.
Tendea Family provides various assistance in communities, including grocery giveaways, neighborhood cleanups and educational programs.