What to Know
- A man and two boys were shot during the Camden-Pleasantville high school football game Friday night.
- The game, which was in the third quarter when gunfire erupted, will be finished Wednesday at Lincoln Financial Field.
- A 31-year-old Atlantic City is accused of attempted murder. Five others, including the adult shooting victim, face gun charges.
The man accused of shooting into a crowded football game in South Jersey Friday night video chatted with an accomplice, who gave him the location of their intended target moments before shots rang out, according to court records.
Shahid Dixon, 27, told police that he spoke with accused gunman Alvin Wyatt, 31, via FaceTime and instructed him on where to find 27-year-old Ibn Abdullah.
Wyatt then shot in that direction, hitting Abdullah and two children, according to police. One of the young victims, a 10-year-old boy, remains in a coma, officials said Monday.
The bloody scene unfolded Friday night at Pleasantville High School, about 7 miles west of Atlantic City. The football team had recently won a division title for the first time in 43 years and were playing the Camden Panthers.
Videos obtained by The Associated Press and NBC10 showed people hitting the ground, running from the bleachers and jumping over chain-link fences as gunfire erupted.
At least six gunshots were audible in a Jersey Sports Zone video, which also showed players stopping mid-play, looking at the stands and then turning to run.
Panicked spectators and some players knocked down a fence in their haste to escape the field.
Victim appeared to be between 10-14 years old. It was a kid in the stands, not on the field. Appears game is being abandoned. Ambulance and first responders are on the field.
— Mike Frankel (@MikeFrankelJSZ) November 16, 2019
"My first reaction was run, run, because you don't wan to be caught up in it," Ernest Howard Jr., co-captain of the Pleasantville High School football team, told NBC10. "The next thing you hear are the gunshots and everybody starts running for the far fence and break through the fence."
Howard's mother, Keisha Miles, was in the stands during the shooting.
"My heart dropped," Miles said. "I tried to keep faith and I was very, very worried."
Abdullah, who allegedly brought a gun to the game, has also been charged in the shooting. A 15-year-old was shot, as well, but has been released from the hospital.
Suspected shooter Wyatt, of Atlantic City, has been charged with three counts of attempted murder and two weapons counts, according to Atlantic County Prosecutor Damon Tyner.
He was captured in the end zone moments after the shooting by a Pleasantville officer assigned to the game, Tyner said.
Three other men - Dixon, 27-year-old Michael Mack, 28-year-old Tyrell Dorn, all of Atlantic City, and Vance Golden, 26, of Pleasantville - are charged with unlawful possession of a weapon, police said. Dixon is also accused of eluding capture.
Authorities have said it did not appear that any of the men charged had any connection to the football game.
