HENRICO COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Members of the Henrico County community are mourning the loss of a Highland Springs High School student.
On Saturday, just after midnight, Henrico Police and Fire & EMS were called to the 1900 block of Glenwilton Drive, between Quinn Abbey Lane and Harvest Grove Lane, for a reported shooting. According to a release, just 11 minutes after midnight, emergency dispatchers obtained information that one person had been shot outside, and the suspect fled the area.
A spokesperson for the Henrico County Police Division (HCPD) said that responders arrived on the scene to secure the area, provide aid, and EMS took a juvenile male to the hospital.
The juvenile succumbed to his injuries and HCPD is now investigating the incident as a homicide.
Because of the teen’s age, authorities have not released his identity publicly. However, local leaders have expressed their heartbreak and condolences for the loss of a young life in the community.
“Please keep the Highland Springs community in your thoughts following the untimely loss of a Springer student,” an Instagram post from Henrico County Public Schools read.
Highland Springs High School Principal Dr. Ken White also expressed his grief on social media, tweeting that Springer Nation was mourning the loss of a young life taken too soon.
“My heart is broken by the news of 1 of my Springers being killed early this morning,” the tweet read. “We HAVE 2 do BETTER! ALL OF US!”
8News spoke with Varina District Supervisor Tyrone Nelson Saturday afternoon. He confirmed that Highland Springs sophomore Jahiem Dickerson was killed following the shooting.
“I got a call early this morning that a young man was murdered,” he said. “Instantly, my heart broke.”
Nelson said that Dickerson was only 16 years old and a guard on the state championship-winning Springers boys basketball team.
“Just last month, I was on the Seigel Center floor, jumping around and cheering and clapping with the rest of the team, as they won their first state title in 14 years at the school,” Nelson said. “It’s just tough. The Highland Springs community is close, close-knit. It’s a family, and so my heart breaks for the family.”
Although Nelson said that he had not been in touch with Dickerson’s next-of-kin directly, HCPD said that the teen’s family had been notified.
“There’s a hurting family out there, and we want to be there to be supportive,” he said. “It’s important to reduce violence in whatever ways and shapes and forms that it takes.”
Nelson said that grief counselors and support systems will be made available to the Highland Springs High School community when students, teachers and staff return to school.
“It’s just a reminder that there are no set times on life,” he said. “We’re human, and we won’t be here forever, and we just do the best that we can with the time that we have.”
HPCD is urging anyone with information to contact them, which can be done anonymously by calling Crime Stoppers.
- Call HCPD Detective Ensor at 804-501-5794
- Call Crime Stoppers at 804-501-5000
- Submit tips on a smartphone via P3Tips.com
