Alleged Gang Member, 15, Charged With Murdering Baby While He Lay In Father's Arms
COMPTON (CBS) — A 15-year-old boy will be arraigned Friday morning on murder charges in the fatal shooting of an infant boy while he lay in his father's arms outside a South Los Angeles home.
Police arrested Donald Ray Dokins Wednesday after he allegedly shot 1-year-old Angel Cortez, according to the L.A. County District Attorney's Office.
Mauro Cortez was reportedly standing outside of a house, holding his baby Angel, in the 105000 block of South Hikory Street on June 4, police reported.
Cortez told police a teen boy rode up on a bicycle, fired several shots at him with a handgun and then sped away.
Investigators say the murder was a gang-motivated shooting. They believe Dokins shot Cortez because he was wearing a purple shirt, a color associated with a gang in the area. Cortez is not a gang member, according to Deputy District Attorney Kenneth E. Lynch.
Authorities offered a $200,000 reward for information leading to the killer. Tips allegedly led detectives to Dokins, who has been charged with one count of murder, with the allegation that it was a gang murder, and one count of attempted murder of the infant's father, Mauro Cortez. The charges were filed in adult court.
Prosecutors said that Dokins faces numerous life sentences if convicted.
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