SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) — The 14-year-old boy who was stabbed to death outside Santa Ana High School has been identified, and two other students have been arrested.
The deadly incident happened Wednesday afternoon, just after classes were dismissed for the day. Police say there is surveillance video that shows the altercation among several teenage boys before one of them pulled out a knife.
Three boys – ages 14, 15, and 16 – were stabbed in front of the school.
The 14-year-old, who later died at the hospital, has been identified by the Orange County Coroner as Armando Morales. The other two students who were injured remain in stable condition. Police said the two students in stable condition are brothers.
A makeshift memorial of candles and flowers was growing outside the school on Thursday as grieving students paid respects to their slain classmate.
One man sitting by the memorial said Armando was his younger brother.
“He was my baby brother, and I lost him, you know… He was 14 years old, and I lost him. I lost him,” he said.
Friends described Armando as a kind and funny kid.
“To see him gone is to see a piece of you gone,” Aaron Chavez said about his friend.
He said he had spoken to him hours before the killing.
“It was a quick dap up, a quick good morning. I wish that would have been a hug,” Chavez said. “I didn’t know that was the last time I was going to see him.”
“He was just always a happy kid and always loved to help and was just an amazing little kid,” the victim’s cousin, Jazmin Delgado said. Armando’s family says the teen was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. They said he stepped in to help his friends when he was stabbed.
The district said crisis counselors are available to help any students. Meanwhile, many parents chose not to send their children to school on Thursday. A spokesperson with the district said they noticed a dip in attendance.
“We are working with our student groups. We are working with our staff who is connected with our students, just to get a better understanding of what happened and also how to, sort of, mitigate this so it doesn’t escalate,” said Fermin Leal with SAUSD.
Parents tell Eyewitness News it’s hard to trust that their students are safe on campus.
“Is my child going to be OK at school?” parent Gina Salinas asked. “Is my child going to be safe? I’m thinking in the morning, is this the last time I’m going to say goodbye?”
Family members set up a GoFundMe to raise money for Armando’s funeral expenses.
Investigation into deadly stabbing
Authorities are still investigating what triggered the deadly confrontation between students, but said it was possibly gang-related.
“You see a lot of hands, kind of, being thrown up in the air,” said Natalie Garcia with Santa Ana police. “And it appears that one of the suspects produced a knife and stabbed several of the victims.”
Two students, brothers ages 15 and 17, suspected of being involved in the incident, turned themselves in late Wednesday night, according to the Santa Ana Police Department.
“Based on interviews with the parents, witness statements, and other video surveillance, both suspects were arrested and booked into juvenile hall for murder and attempted murder,” Garcia said.
The brothers showed up at the police station with their parents, who were questioned. The teenagers were then arrested on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.
The knife that was allegedly used has not been recovered.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the Santa Ana Police Department.
