Police make arrest connected to June shooting
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BY HILARY KINDSCHUH / Lincoln Journal Star
Police have arrested a 20-year-old man in connection with a shooting last month that left a 22-year-old man paralyzed from the neck down.
Justin Blankenship was arrested on suspicion of accessory to a felony after the June 8 incident, said Sgt. Don Scheinost.
At 3:30 a.m. on June 8, a man knocked on the door at an apartment at 43rd Street and Cornhusker Highway, appearing confrontational and upset, with more than a dozen men behind him.
Someone inside answered the door and closed it, but the man kept knocking and kept yelling. The victim, who had been beaten a day earlier, came out of the apartment.
Then witnesses heard a string of shots.
Police arrived to find the victim on the ground with three gunshot wounds from a .45-caliber handgun and a stab wound to the right side of his face.
Benjamin Velde, 20, 2733 N.W. Eighth St., was hit in his right shoulder and showed up later at BryanLGH Medical Center West.
Velde and Anthony C. Tran, 20, 1941 Hartley St., stand accused of attempted murder, by way of abetting.
John Le, 20, turned himself in to police on June 23. He was arrested on suspicion of attempted first-degree murder.
Prosecutors charged Le with attempted first-degree murder, first-degree assault and two counts of using a weapon to commit a felony.
Police believe Le fired the gun that injured Velde and the 22-year-old victim.
On the day of the shooting, Robert Reynozo, 21, was arrested on suspicion of criminal conspiracy.
Reach Hilary Kindschuh at 473-7120 or hkindschuh@journalstar.com.
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