ORANGE CITY, Fla. - 17-year-old Jeremie Cuevas was arrested by the Volusia Sheriff's Office for having allegedly shot his friend on accident, leading to serious injuries for the other teen. The victim was last said to be in critical but stable condition.
According to a report from the VSO, Cuevas was in a car with three other friends, sitting in the back right seat. He is said to have reached into his pocket where a firearm was being kept, and accidentally fired a shot forward through the passenger seat in front of him. The bullet went through the seat and through his friend's back.
Police say Cuevas and one of the other passengers ran away after the shot was fired. The other remaining passenger flagged down a deputy from his car, where the victim was still left bleeding. Soon thereafter, deputies tracked Cuevas down and took him in for an interview about the shooting.
The VSO says Cuevas admitted to having shot his friend but maintained that it was an accident, and that he was trying to retrieve the cell phone he kept in that same pocket. In the chaos following the shooting, he reportedly said he tossed the gun away. Deputies could not immediately find it after responding to the incident.
Following his apparent confession, Cuevas was arrested and taken to the Volusia Family Resource Center for processing and the Department of Juvenile Justice to he held. As of the most recent report, Cuevas was still in custody.
Video of the arrest was made available by the Volusia Sheriff's Office:
