Walking, Three Dead
Two arrested in north Tulsa shootings that claimed three lives
The shootings were a day after 2-year anniversary of slaying of
suspect's fatherBy ZACK STOYCOFF World Staff Writer
Published: 4/8/2012 4:37 AM
Last Modified: 4/8/2012 8:14 PM
Tulsa police have arrested two white men who are accused of killing
three black residents and injuring two others in a shooting spree that
authorities deemed "unprecedented."
Jake England, 19, and Alvin Watts, 32, were arrested at 1:47 a.m.
Sunday, about 48 hours after police began discovering gunshot victims
in a three-mile area of north Tulsa.
The pair were found together in a neighborhood near where the
shootings occurred after police received several anonymous tips that
England was the shooter, according to arrest reports.
"It is way too early to call this a hate crime," Federal Bureau of
Investigation agent James Finch said at a Sunday afternoon news
conference. "We have yet to analyze all the information to understand
the motivations in this case.
"This is where the really tough work starts in the investigation. This
is where we can't afford to make mistakes," he said.
The FBI was called to assist with the case.
Finch asked that people keep in mind the victims. "No family should be
subjected to this," he said.
"Hopefully … this (arrests) adds some degree of closure for the families.
Dannaer Fields, 49, Bobby Clark, 54 and William Allen, 31, were
identified as those who died after three separate shootings Friday.
Two other men were wounded in a fourth shooting but were expected to
survive. They have not been identified.
The arrests came less than 12 hours after authorities formed a task
force called Operation Random Shooter, which consisted of 30
investigators from the Tulsa Police Department, the Tulsa County
Sheriff's Office, the U.S. Marshals Service and the FBI.
At a press conference Saturday, Tulsa police Chief Chuck Jordan called
the attacks vicious and cowardly and said his agency was going to do
whatever it takes to apprehend anyone involved.
"Our sympathy goes out to the families of the victims and we hope that
our efforts can bring some resolution and closure to these heinous
acts," police said in a news release Sunday.
Community leaders in north Tulsa and a representative of the National
Association for the Advancement of Colored People said Friday that it
seemed as though the shootings were racially-motivated.
Jordan said Saturday that there was no evidence for that, but that it
was a logical explanation. Police did not address the motivation for
the shootings early Sunday.
A man who is identified on Jake England's Facebook page as his father,
Carl England, was fatally shot April 5, 2010, at Comanche Park
Apartments, 3608 N. Quaker Ave. Carl England's death was about a
quarter-mile east of where Allen's body was found early Friday,
according to the Tulsa World archives.
The man arrested in Carl England's death, Pernell Demond Jefferson,
was charged with pointing a firearm and is serving a prison sentence
through October 2014, according to Department of Corrections records.
Jefferson is black.
Jake England makes several references to the two-year anniversary of
his father's death on his Facebook page, including a post 3:04 p.m.
Thursday that says, "Today is two years that my dad has been gone shot
by a f------ n----- it's hard not to go off between that and sheran
I'm gone in the head."
England's Facebook page indicates that his girlfriend, Sheran Hart
Wilde, recently died. Her death notice was published Jan. 12 in the
Tulsa World.
Fields, Clark and Allen were likely killed early Friday, police said.
Fields' body was discovered about 1 a.m. in a yard in the 1000 block
of East 51st Place North. Clark's body was found about 1:50 a.m. in
another yard in the 300 block of West 63rd Street North and Allen's
body was found about 8:30 a.m. in the 800 block of East 36th Street
North.
The two men who survived were found in the street in the 1300 block of
East 51st Place North three minutes after police found Fields' body.
Willingham said early Sunday that he could not confirm whether revenge
was a motive. Police had previously said that the victims had no
apparent connection to each other.
At 10:15 p.m. Friday, Jake England posted on Facebook, "Chilling at
that house people talking s--- on me for some s--- I didn't do ... it
just mite be the time to call it quits I I hate to say it like that
but I'm done if something does happen tonite be ready for another
funeral later."
Alvin Watts, who is Jake England's friend on Facebook, has frequently
posted to England's Facebook page since January. His posts seem to be
aimed at encouraging England not to be down in the wake of the deaths
in his life.
Tulsa jail records list the same home address for Watts and England in
the 2800 block of East 61st Street North.
Authorities served a search warrant at the residence before further
surveillance led them early Sunday to a neighborhood about a mile
west, according to their arrest report.
The location of their arrest as shown in their arrest report does not
correspond to a residence, according to Tulsa County property records.
The report says they were found in the 6200 block of North Yorktown
Avenue.
Watts' Facebook page says he lives in Sperry, is from Muskogee and
attended Muskogee High School. His arrest report lists his next of kin
as his brother in Sperry.
England's Facebook page says he is from Tulsa and attended Sperry High School.
According to the arrest reports, several people who called the Tulsa
Crime Commission's anonymous Crime Stoppers tip line Saturday reported
that England was responsible for the shootings.
Callers said he owned a white pickup and intended to burn it.
Osage County deputies found a burned white pickup near 6000 N. Osage
Drive about 6 p.m. Saturday, the reports say. The truck's registration
checked to Jacob or Carl England, the arrest reports say.
England and Watts were booked into the Tulsa Jail without bail on
three complaints of first-degree murder, two complaints of shooting
with intent to kill and a complaint of possession a firearm in
commission of a felony.
Jake England's first name is listed in jail records as Jacob.
Read more from this Tulsa World article at
http://www.tulsaworld.com/news/article.aspx?subjectid=11&articleid=20120408_297_0_Tomnhv525414
--
Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time.
Have a great day,
Tommy
--
Together, we can change the world, one mind at a time.
Have a great day,
Tommy
--
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