A Monroe County man is in custody after being arrested on Friday for assisting another suspect in a January shooting at the Starkville Sportsplex.
Starkville Police Department arrested 23-year-old Ladarius Clensha Patterson, of Prairie, on suspicion of two counts of accessory after the fact.
Patterson, according to affidavits the Dispatch obtained from Starkville Municipal Court, helped Jalon Gates, of Houston, after the Jan. 28 shooting, “with intent to enable him to avoid punishment” after the incident.
Police arrested Gates, 19, in early February for two counts of aggravated assault. His bond was set at a combined $100,000.
Patterson was booked into the Oktibbeha County Jail, where he remained on $30,000 bond as of Friday evening.
The shooting at the Sportsplex happened shortly after 12:30 a.m., while the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity was hosting an event at the facility. Two people suffered non-life-threatening injuries to their lower bodies. The shooting reportedly occurred as people were leaving the event.
City officials tightened Starkville’s event policy for the Sportsplex and other parks after the shooting. Mayor Lynn Spruill initially ordered Interim Parks and Recreation Director Gerry Logan to have all events at the Sportsplex end at 10 p.m. The board of aldermen later approved those policy changes.
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