By: Las Vegas Now Staff
The teenager arrested for the shooting at a bus stop here made his first court appearance in Denver Friday. At a brief court hearing, he said he would not resist efforts to return him to Las Vegas.
Eighteen-year-old Nicco Tatum, who was on a bus on his way to Chicago, was met by police Wednesday night in Denver and arrested.
He faces six counts of battery with a deadly weapon and attempted murder with a deadly weapon.
A Mojave High School student told police he “accidentally bumped” into shooting suspect, Nicco Tatum, which touched off a fight that eventually led to six people being shot at a school bus stop on Tuesday afternoon.
Metro had obtained a warrant for Tatum, charging him with six counts of attempted murder and six counts of battery with a deadly weapon with substantial bodily harm.
Read the Declarations of Warrant for Nicco Tatum
In the warrant, a Mojave High School student tells police that he accidentally bumped into Tatum while walking home from the bus stop on Monday. He told police that attempted to apologize to Tatum, but instead Tatum started a physical fight with him. He said Tatum had several friends with him and he was fearful, but he was able to get away and make it home.
The student said he was concerned about his safety and asked friends and family to meet him at the bus stop on Tuesday in case Tatum returned. He told police when he exited the bus on Tuesday, he saw Tatum and several of Tatum's friends. He told police his friends were also there so he felt safe in leaving the bus.
The student said as soon as he got off the bus, Tatum and his friends moved toward him and then he heard gun shots. The student was shot in the leg as he attempted to runaway. There were also five other victims hit by gun fire.
Tatum has been described as a troublemaker and police say he has gang ties. He was a student at Mojave High School, but dropped out during his junior year. Friends say Tatum frequented the area where the shooting happened.
Police haven't said much about the second suspect. Metro Deputy Chief Gary Schofield says they are working hard to identify and arrest the second shooter, “The second suspect knows who he is and his best course of action would be to turn himself in because we are actively looking to identify him. And when those arrest warrants come forward, there will be a knock on his front door to take him into custody.”
In the meantime, security remains beefed up at Mojave High School where a crisis-response plan has been activated since the shooting.
Metro patrol officers, school police and detectives have parked on the side of the road and kept a close eye on all of the activity and students riding on the bus route where the gunfire happened.
“We've got extra officers at several high schools,” said Clark County School District police Sgt. Ken Young. But he says the investigation remains focused at the northeast school were the dispute originated.
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One student told Eyewitness News that she'd be afraid to speak out. “If you snitch, your life is on the line. You're gonna be gone or something. If you snitch you face the possibility you'll be dead the next day or you'll get beat up. I would never snitch on somebody, even if I did know something,” said Kylasha Green.
Police insist that the shooting was not gang related, but say gang detectives are assisting with the investigation. They have also refused to release Tatum's mug shot and any prior criminal history.
Four teens and two adults were hit during the gunfire. A 17-year-old male and 18-year-old Alex Rios are both listed in serious condition. The other four victims were released from the hospital the day of the shooting.
New Website to Help Parents Track School Violence
Sheriff Doug Gillespie, Clark County School District Superintendent Walt Rulffes and other law enforcement representatives held a joint news conference Tuesday evening. Sheriff Gillespie stressed that the schools are safe.
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