Durham man charged in shooting of 9-year-old Z'Yon Person who was killed in August on the way to get snow cones with family

Wednesday, October 16, 2019

DURHAM, N.C. -- A man has been arrested in connection with the shooting death of 9-year-old boy back in August.

Antonio Davenport, 24, was charged Tuesday morning at the Durham County Jail in the murder of Z'Yon Person. Davenport was being held in the jail on charges from a prior domestic violence offense.

Z'Yon was killed and an 8-year-old was hurt in the shooting near Duke Street and Leon Street the night of Sunday, August 18. Person was one of five children in a car on the way to Pelican's SnoBalls to get snow cones, his family told ABC11.

"I hear a horn and when the horn beeped I looked around," Z'Yon's aunt, Danyell Ragland, told ABC11 at the time. "I'm getting ready to turn and...I hear gunshots but I didn't know they were shooting at me."

"They're going to pay. I promise," she said "They're going to rot in hell for what they did."

Davenport is charged with first-degree murder, felony conspiracy to commit murder, assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious bodily injury, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, five counts of attempted first-degree murder, two counts of discharging a weapon into an occupied property causing serious injury and three counts of discharging a weapon into an occupied vehicle/residence.

The judge did not offer bond to Davenport. He will be assigned a public defender and return to court Nov. 21.

"The arrest is the result of relentless hard work by members of the Durham Police Department with assistance from the FBI's Safe Streets Task Force," Durham Police Chief C.J. Davis said. "Our officers and investigators, with support from concerned and engaged community members, will continue the fight against gun violence in our city."

The investigation is active and ongoing. Anyone with further information is asked to call Investigator Cramer at (919) 560-4440, ext. 29284 or CrimeStoppers at (919) 683-1200. CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards for information leading to arrests in felony cases and callers never have to identify themselves.

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