Two students were injured when their Albemarle Road Middle School bus was struck by gunfire.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A 23-year-old man has been arrested and charged with shooting into a Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools bus filled with kids on Monday.
Joaheim Boone appeared in court on Friday charged with three counts of intent to kill and seven counts of shooting into an occupied moving vehicle. A judge denied him bond.
Boone is accused of firing a Glock 45 9mm handgun into the school bus, according to court documents. The shooting was the result of a drug deal and “turf” dispute, according to additional court documents.
Two students from Albemarle Road Middle School were hurt by shattered glass on Monday. They were riding on the bus when the bullet struck the window as the bus traveled along East W.T. Harris Blvd. near Albemarle Road.
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CMPD said around 3:40 p.m. Monday, officers responded to a reported shooting on W.T. Harris Boulevard. When officers arrived, they met with a juvenile who said he was with some other people to buy marijuana when their car was shot into. The juvenile, whose age hasn’t been released, was taken to the hospital with cuts from the shattered glass.
Nearby officers found an Infiniti Q50 with obvious bullet holes and broken windows. CMPD says the car was reported stolen and matched the description of the vehicle the juvenile said he ran from after it was shot at. The juvenile said he was picked up earlier in the day by a man who goes by “Marquise,” who had talked to officers earlier in the day when he was squatting in a vacant apartment with the juvenile. Detectives identified “Marquise” as 20-year-old Paris Lewis-Bynum.
The juvenile said he was in the Infiniti trying to buy marijuana from Lewis-Bynum when Lewis-Bynum said “other business” to attend to and pulled into the parking lot of a Dollar General on Albemarle Road next to a white car. The juvenile told police that Lewis-Bynum and someone in the white car got into an argument that led to a shootout between both vehicles.
The juvenile said he ducked from gunfire before running toward the school bus for help. Multiple children on the bus were treated for injuries caused by broken glass and a nearby church was also hit by gunfire. No one at the church was injured during the incident.
Detectives reviewed body camera footage from the squatting incident referenced by the juvenile and found a man matching the description of “Marquise.” The man told police his real name, Paris Lewis-Bynum, and he was arrested on Wednesday. He’s charged with possession of a stolen firearm, possession of a firearm by a felon, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill and possession of a stolen motor vehicle.
Court documents revealed that Lewis-Bynum is accused of using a stolen rifle to “defend drug territory” by firing shots, damaging the school bus, which wasn’t the intended target. He is being held under no bond and is scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 9.
CMPD has also arrested 21-year-old Lamarius Ramel Anthony, who was in the other vehicle. He has been charged with felony possession of cocaine and carrying a concealed weapon. He’s being held in jail on a $9,000 bond. The juvenile who initially spoke with CMPD was taken into custody for possession of a stolen vehicle.
