ST. LUCIE COUNTY, Fla. — Deputies in St. Lucie County have recovered the car they said was used in a drive-by shooting that claimed the life of a 16-year-old boy on Monday.
The vehicle is a dark gray 2016 Chevrolet Cruze with a dark tint and a dent on the driver's side rear quarter panel. The license plate number is AM99IM.
Detectives are asking if anyone saw the vehicle in the area of Juanita Avenue between 1:30-2 p.m.
That's when the teen, identified by his mother as Vontreaz Banner, was fatally shot while getting mail outside of his grandmother's house.
His mother said he loved playing basketball and wanted to become a shoe designer. When they would go shopping, she said they would always buy shoes first before any other clothes. She said he had been working at Waffle House since January.
Banner's mother said she was visiting the home on Monday to bring him his work clothes when she found him face down in the driveway. She at first thought he was playing a prank before discovering he had been shot.
The teen was a sophomore last year at Fort Pierce Westwood Academy.
Henry Duhart, a community activist, said he has seen too much of this violence in recent months.
"It stings because one day you see them at karaoke the next day they’re gone," Duhart said. "It gets to a broader issue of needing more opportunities and people being more knowledgeable about what's going on in their community."
Banner's mother said she can't believe her son was killed in broad daylight and will do whatever she needs to find justice.
The sheriff's office is asking for the public to provide any information, including video footage, to detectives to help in the case. Contact Detective Clay Mangrum at 772-370-0021 or call Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at (800) 273-8477 (TIPS).
