Four Charlotte teenagers face adult murder charges after a four-year-old boy was shot in the head and killed while asleep when gunmen fired 84 bullets into occupied homes.
Shortly before 3 a.m. on September 20, seven armed individuals jumped out of two stolen cars and opened fire on four occupied homes along a residential street in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Four-year-old Caleb Flax was struck in the head while asleep in his own home. He was rushed to a hospital and pronounced dead four hours later. An adult woman, Kaley Collins, was critically injured but survived. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officials said nine other adults and five children inside the homes escaped injury.
Police later announced the arrests of four teenagers charged as adults with offenses including murder, conspiracy, and possession of a stolen vehicle. A 22-year-old man was charged as an accessory after the fact. The case rests on stolen cars, phone records, GPS data, surveillance video, and statements detailed in court documents.
Court documents reviewed by the Daily Mail describe the attack as a coordinated burst of gunfire from two stolen vehicles: a Mercedes-Benz and a 2018 Infiniti. Investigators marked dozens of shell casings at the scene.
CMPD Chief of Police Estella D. Patterson addressed the killings directly.
"Caleb should have been safe in his own bed. Instead, his life was ended in an act of unthinkable violence, and another victim was wounded,"
Patterson added that detectives had been relentless from the start and would not rest until every person responsible faced justice.
The morning after the shooting, detectives located the stolen Mercedes-Benz. A handgun magazine sat in the driver’s seat. The registered owner gave permission for a full search. Police downloaded the car’s infotainment system. GPS data placed the vehicle at the shooting location the night before.
An iPhone connected to that stolen Mercedes on September 15 belonged to 16-year-old Ar’montae Johnson. Phone GPS also placed Johnson at the spot where both vehicles had been stolen. The second car was the 2018 Infiniti.
Johnson was arrested September 23. In interviews described in the affidavits, he allegedly said he drove the stolen Mercedes to an Airbnb party on the night of September 19. There he spoke with several people who said they wanted to shoot up a house in retaliation for a previous shooting. Johnson allegedly handed them the keys knowing the individuals were armed.
When the shooters returned, they had ditched both the Mercedes and the Infiniti. They arrived back at the party in a Jeep driven by 17-year-old Antonio Ladson, according to Johnson’s alleged account.
Antonio Ladson was arrested September 25. A search of his home turned up a Glock 27 in the attic, chambered with the same kind of rounds recovered at the scene.
Phone records showed a text exchange between Johnson and 16-year-old Jaylen Barber on the night of the shooting. Barber was arrested September 29. He allegedly admitted leaving the Airbnb party in the stolen Infiniti and taking part in the shooting. Both Barber and Johnson allegedly identified 17-year-old Ian Garland as the driver of the stolen Mercedes during the attack. Garland was arrested September 30.
Affidavits state that the teenagers’ accounts of the night were corroborated by extensive surveillance footage.
Terrance Jackson, 22, was also arrested September 29 and charged as an accessory after the fact. Court documents allege he helped Johnson reprogram a key for the stolen Infiniti and lined up a buyer in South Carolina. Johnson allegedly drove the Infiniti to that buyer, sold it for $1,200, and split the money with Jackson. Jackson had prior arrests on stolen-vehicle offenses.
The four teenagers, Johnson, 16; Barber, 16; Ladson, 17; and Garland, 17, were charged as adults. Their charges include murder, conspiracy, and possession of a stolen vehicle. Jackson faces the accessory count for allegedly helping dispose of one of the cars.
CMPD has said the investigation remains active and ongoing. Remaining individuals allegedly involved in the shooting have not yet been arrested. Police have asked the public to come forward with any relevant information.
Patterson framed the five arrests as the product of steady detective work.
"From the moment this investigation began, our detectives have been relentless in their pursuit of justice for the victims and their families,"
She continued: "The five arrests announced today are a direct result of that unwavering commitment and we will not rest until every person responsible for this tragedy is brought to justice."
A four-year-old boy died in his bed because armed teenagers chose street retaliation over every basic rule of civilized life. Adult charges and full prosecution are the only answer that matches the crime.
