Seeking revenge from a fight earlier Wednesday evening, winds up with an innocent 17-year-old girl shot while a passenger in a pickup going down a residential street in Salina.
Salina Police Chief Brad Nelson said Allie Saum died of a gunshot wound to the head after several shots were fired at a pickup going down the 500 block of Russell about 9:30 p.m.
Nelson said the individuals arrested in connection with the shooting thought the occupants in the pickup were involved in the fight earlier, and were standing in the street when the pickup driven by 18-year-old Vince Johnson drove by.
Johnson stopped the pickup in the 800 block of Russell.
Nelson said thanks to nearby residents, they were able to get a description of a car the five suspects left the area in.
Saum was taken to Salina Regional Health Center where she died early Thursday morning.
The five arrested were:
22-year-old Macio Palacio on requested charges of felony murder, and unlawful discharge of a weapon.
19-year-old Jerome Forbes, 18-year-old Stephen Gentry, 19-year-old Daniel Sims, on requested charges of conspiracy to commit felony murder, conspiracy to commit criminal discharge of a weapon and obstruction.
17-year-old Andrew Woodring on requested charges of conspiracy to commit felony murder, conspiracy to commit criminal discharge of a weapon.
21-year-old Azucena Garcia-Ferniza on requested charges of felony obstruction and child endangerment.
Chief Nelson offered his condolences to the family of Saum and said the suspects and victim did not know each other. Crime scene investigators were out at the site of the shooting early Thursday morning.
Police will issue a complete statement concerning the case later Thursday.
Official release from Salina Police Department
At approximately 9:31 p.m., May 6, 2015 officers from the Salina Police Department were sent to the 800 block of Russell reference to a female suffering from a gunshot wound. Upon their arrival, they found Allie Saum, 17-years-old, with a gunshot wound to the head. Saum was immediately transported to the Salina Regional Health Center by medics. She was later pronounced deceased in the early morning hours of May 7th.
During our investigation, it was discovered that, Vince Johnson, 18-years-old, was driving a blue Dodge truck eastbound in the 500 block block of Russell and Saum was a passenger. As he was driving, several shots were fired at the truck with one round traveling through the rear window striking Saum in the head. Two other shots struck the tailgate of the victim’s vehicle and a parked vehicle. Witnesses reported a silver Honda passenger car had fled the area shortly after the shooting.
As of the result of our investigation, the following people were arrested in connection to the shooting:
Macio Palacio, 22, of 1674 Beverly: Felony Murder, Unlawful Discharge of a Weapon.
Andrew Woodring, 17, of 737 Commanche: Conspiracy to Commit Felony Murder, Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Discharge of a Weapon.
Jerome Forbes, 19, of 2130 E. Crawford: Conspiracy to Commit Felony Murder, Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Discharge of a Weapon and Obstruction.
Stephen Gentry, 18, of 2130 E. Crawford: Conspiracy to Commit Felony Murder, Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Discharge of a Weapon and Obstruction.
Daniel Sims, 19, of 2130 E. Crawford: Conspiracy to Commit Felony Murder, Conspiracy to Commit Criminal Discharge of a Weapon and Obstruction.
Azucena Garcia-Ferniza, 21, of 1674 Beverly: Felony Obstruction and Child Endangerment.
Our investigation revealed that the above male subjects were in the area looking to seek revenge from a fight that occurred earlier in the evening. Palacio was carrying a .45 caliber handgun at the time.
As Johnson was driving by, they mistakenly identified him as a participant from the earlier disturbance. Palicio fired several rounds at the truck from his handgun striking Saum in the head. The four other males were present when the shots were fired. The victims had no connection to the suspects involved in the shooting.
Palicio was later located at his residence of 1674 Beverly. The handgun was found after Azucena Garcia-Ferniza attempted to hide it on her person. Two male children (ages 9 and 2) were also removed from the residence and placed in protective custody.