Former UTEP Football Player Arrested
EL PASO, TX. – Four people are facing felony charges after a gang-related gunfire incident Monday night in Northeast El Paso.
One of those arrested used to wear aUTEP football jersey. El Paso Police arrested formerUTEP Defensive Back Brandon ThigpenTuesday morning in connection with shots firedMonday night in Northeast El Paso.
This isn’t the first time the 18-year-old has been arrested. Coach Mike Price says Thigpen was dismissed from the team in September. He was arrested along with 17-year-old Roynisha Vandivier, 18-year-old Brandon Harrison and 17-year-old Julian McMahan.
All four are charged with engaging in Organized Criminal Activity/Deadly Conduct. Thigpen was previously arrested back in July for public intoxication after severalUTEP players were involved in a fight in front of Club Blu Nightclub.
According to police, five people got into a fight with rival gang members around 7p.m. Mondaynight. A few hours later, Thigpen and four others drove to an apartment complex on the 5000 blockof Sean Haggerty.
It was then, police say, that someone fired shots: “Once they got there, they spotted two of these individuals from the rival gang. The suspect got out of the vehicle and opened fire with a small caliber handgun, jumped back in the vehicle and they fled the scene,” said El Paso Police Spokesman, Javier Sambrano.
Thigpen is in the El Paso County Jail Tuesday night under a $1,000 bond. Harrison and McMahan are being held under $3,000 bonds. In addition to the four suspects in custody, police are still looking for a fifth – an 18-year-old male they believe was the shooter.
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Written forbroadcastbyAshlie Hardway
Edited for KVIA.com by Miguel Martinez
