16-Year-Old Pleads Not Guilty to First Degree Murder

A teenage boy accused of shooting to death a 32-year-old man in Grand Island has pleaded not guilty.

Hall County District Court records say a lawyer for 16-year-old Arek Friedricksen entered written pleas on Friday. The charges: first-degree murder and use of a firearm to commit a felony.

KFOR News media partner 10/11 Now reports Captain Jim Duering of the GIPD said the initial call came in around 9:15 pm April 24 as a disturbance in the Lincoln Park area. Once the officer arrived, they found Arrellano with multiple gunshot wounds to his torso. Arrellano was taken by ambulance from the scene. That night, authorities said he died from his injuries while being treated in the CHI Health St. Francis Emergency Room.

The Hall County Attorney said Friedricksen used a Tec-9 handgun to murder Arrellano. It was the first criminal homicide in Grand Island since January 2018.

At the time of the murder, Duering said, “We do believe that this was a targeted incident, not a victim selected at random.”

Hall County District Court has chosen to transfer the case to a higher court for possible trial.

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