BOULDER CREEK, Calif. (KRON) — A house party in the Santa Cruz Mountains turned violent when an 18-year-old Soquel teenager was shot to death, investigators said.
“The victim has been identified as 18-year-old Rowan Parham of Soquel. Our hearts and condolences are with Rowan’s family and friends during this incredibly tragic time,” the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office wrote.
Teenagers were partying at 10 p.m. Saturday on Brimblecom Road in Boulder Creek when someone called 911 to report that Parham had been shot. A 16-year-old boy who allegedly shot him fled down Highway 9, witnesses told dispatchers.
Deputies arrived at the shooting scene at 10:14 p.m. and found Rowan suffering from a fatal gunshot wound. According to the Santa Cruz City School District, Parham was a former Soquel High School student. School officials described the shooting as “the latest cruelty in an ongoing national epidemic of senseless gun violence.”
The 16-year-old boy was later found and arrested by homicide detectives. “Detectives worked through the night and brought the suspect into custody (Sunday) afternoon,” the Sheriff’s Office wrote.
The arrested teen’s name was not released by SCCSO because he is a juvenile.