The murder was caught on video, police say.
Two balaclava-wearing high school students have been charged as adults in the stabbing death of another teen at a Wyoming mall this week.
Bobby Maher, 14, had reportedly come to the Eastridge Mall in Casper on Sunday when his girlfriend called and told him the two murderers were following her and a friend around the mall, the Cowboy State Daily reported.
Jarreth Joseflee “JJ” Sabstian Plunkett and Dominique “Dom” Antonio Richard Harris — both 15 — have now been charged with conspiracy to commit murder, aggravated assault and battery, and theft. Plunkett, the boy who stabbed Maher to death, has been charged with first-degree murder.
Killers Stole Knives from Target Before Murder
The two children said they stole kitchen knives from Target, along with Red Bulls and other items, prior to killing their classmate.
Maher came to the mall with another friend after getting the phone call from his girlfriend, the Daily reported. According to the friend, once there, they found the two girls and the murderers walking in front of them, an affidavit says. Maher led the girls out of the mall, the friend said, “telling JJ and Dom to leave.”
“Once all the individuals were outside the exterior entrance doors to the mall a physical altercation ensued,” according to the affidavit. Then, Maher’s friend said, “Dom slammed (Maher) to the ground and that JJ walked up and stabbed (Maher).”
Maher’s friend told police he didn’t know the killers’ last names but that all of the children had attended middle school together.
Video footage showed Plunkett chasing Maher down shouting obscenities at him before the murder.
“[Plunkett] also told [Maher] to swing on him several times; however, [Maher] clearly did not want to fight as he is seen moving in a continuous backwards motion away from [Plunkett],” the affidavit says.
The video also showed Harris blocking Maher as Plunkett approached from the front, just before Harris picked him up and slammed him to the ground.
“[Harris] is seen holding [Maher] while [Plunkett] jumped in. [Harris] appeared to strike [Maher] in the face, while [Plunkett] is observed swinging the knife in a downward motion, stabbing [Maher] twice,” according to the affidavit.
The video shows the murderers stepping back from their victim, with Plunkett putting the knife in his pocket. Maher stands and staggers toward the mall doors while a third, unnamed suspect kicks him, the affidavit says.
Police have not released the video.
Victim ‘Never Threw a Punch’
Harris reportedly told police that their teens’ victim “never threw a punch, never slapped, never pushed anyone,” the affidavit says.
According to the affidavit, Plunkett told Maher’s girlfriend that he planned on fighting Maher, then told police he didn’t want to “start a problem, but Dominique did.” He also told police that Maher told him to “put the knife away, this isn’t fair,” and he responded by telling his victim “I don’t fight fair.”
According to the affidavit, Maher had called Harris and Plunkett “freaks” in a previous incident at a park in Evansville when he saw them go into a porta-potty together. Harris and Plunkett said they’d wanted to fight Maher since that time, the Casper Star Tribune said.
The affidavit also says that investigators recovered the knife used to kill Maher from a grassy area near the mall entrance along with two balaclava masks the murderers were wearing, Wyoming News Now reported.
Harris was given a $450,000, and Plunkett was given a $500,000. Both could face the death penalty if convicted on the most serious charges.
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[Featured image: Bobby Maher/GoFundMe]
