A Texas A&M-Texarkana baseball player was struck by a stray bullet during a game, had emergency surgery and is in stable condition, the school said Monday.
Matthew Delaney, 18, from Princeton, Texas, was standing near the bullpen at George Dobson Field at Spring Lake Park in Texarkana during a game against University of Houston-Victoria on Sunday afternoon when he was hit in the chest by the bullet.
The Texarkana Police Department said it received several calls of shots fired in a neighborhood just west of the park, and believes the bullet that struck Delaney was from a shootout that took place there. Police do not believe Delaney was targeted.
“The incident started as a disturbance there that lead to two men shooting at each other in front of the house,” Texarkana PD wrote in a Facebook post. “One of those errant rounds travelled about 400 yards and struck the innocent victim at the ball field.”
Demarco Banks, 20, who police believe was one of the shooters, turned himself in on charges of deadly conduct. The police are still searching for Kamauri Butler, 17, who is believed to be the other gunman. He is wanted on a warrant for aggravated assault.
Officers also arrested Yankeengea Smith, 49, for unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and two counts of possession of a controlled substance, Nathan Moore, 19, for tampering with evidence and possession of marijuana and Marcell Beaver, 19, for possession of marijuana.
The game was called a no-contest. An A&M-Texarkana spokesman said Monday that baseball coach Steve Jones was able to visit Delaney on Sunday as he recovers.
