On December 17, three students at Erie High School were observed standing outside a classroom. According to Erie police, surveillance footage shows one of the students yelling into the classroom while the other two stood alongside him.

Despite staff intervention ordering him to leave, the student continued yelling.

School officials reported that classes at Erie High concluded at 3:40 p.m.

The student who was shouting into the classroom was seen exiting the building at approximately 3:52 p.m. Just three minutes later, a rear passenger in a red Ford Fusion opened fire into a crowd at the intersection of West 31st and Liberty streets, located about five blocks from Erie High, at 3325 Cherry Street.

The gunfire resulted in the tragic death of 17-year-old Armoni Cantu and inflicted a gunshot wound to the face of another 17-year-old male.

A red Chrysler 200 sedan parked near the crowd was also struck by the gunfire, police reported.

Erie police have linked the classroom altercation to the subsequent shooting, a connection reaffirmed with the recent filing of criminal charges.

The student who was seen yelling outside the classroom has been identified as 17-year-old Jamarion J.L. Boone. Investigators allege Boone was in the back seat of the Ford Fusion when the shots were fired.

He has been charged as an adult with first-degree murder, criminal conspiracy, and related offenses. Boone was charged on December 19, but as of now, he remains at large, according to court records.

Authorities previously arrested Boone’s two co-defendants on December 18.

Investigators assert that these individuals were present with Boone outside the classroom and inside the Ford Fusion during the shooting. The two defendants have been identified as 18-year-old Martavion C.D. Thompson and 17-year-old Jahmeir O. Bibbs.

Both face charges of first-degree murder, criminal conspiracy, and other related offenses. Thompson is currently held at the Erie County Prison without bail due to the severity of the charges.

Bibbs, also charged as an adult, is being detained at the Edmund L. Thomas Adolescent Center in Millcreek Township, also without bail.

According to authorities, Cantu, the homicide victim, sustained a fatal gunshot wound to the chest and was pronounced dead at Saint Vincent Hospital nearly an hour after the shooting. Erie School District officials confirmed that Cantu was not a student at Erie High, but his school enrollment status remains unclear.

The second victim, who sustained a gunshot wound to the face, was transferred from Saint Vincent Hospital to Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC for further treatment. Court documents identify him by the initials N.S., and the Erie School District confirmed he is enrolled at Erie High.

Police believe the shooting stemmed from an ongoing conflict between two rival groups within the Erie community. Investigators determined that the earlier classroom dispute involved Boone and an occupant of the Chrysler 200 that was targeted in the shooting. The gunfire that ensued resulted in Cantu’s death as he stood among the crowd.

Further evidence was obtained through an interview with Thompson conducted on December 18. Thompson corroborated the classroom incident and confirmed its direct connection to the shooting later that day. Police utilized surveillance footage and witness statements to track the Ford Fusion and identify the suspects.

During his interview, Thompson disclosed to investigators that he was seated in the front passenger seat of the Fusion while Boone and Bibbs were in the back seat. He stated that the shots were fired from the rear of the vehicle, further implicating his co-defendants in the crime.

The investigation remains ongoing, and law enforcement officials continue to urge anyone with additional information to come forward. The accused individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.