Teen wanted in California killing found in LV school

Thursday, May 27, 2004 | 8:14 a.m.

A 15-year-old Southern California teenager was charged with murder after he was arrested at a Las Vegas high school.

Metro Police, with assistance from Clark County School District Police, arrested James Raphael Jacobs of Bellflower, Calif., on Wednesday in an April shooting death.

Southern California authorities alerted Metro Police to the possibility that the suspect was in Las Vegas.

Jacobs, who will turn 16 in October, was taken into custody without incident at Valley High School, said Sgt. Dan Flaherty of Metro's Fugitive Detail.

"There was no incident whatsoever," Flaherty said. "He was almost nonchalant at the time of his arrest."

Jacobs has been isolated in an area at the Clark County Detention Center secured for violent juveniles, Flaherty said. He will be held without bail until an extradition hearing is scheduled.

Metro's Fugitive Detail worked with school officials to determine whether Jacobs was attending the school. Then they ensured the student was quietly moved away from other students, Flaherty said.

He is accused of shooting to death an 18-year-old attending a party in Bellflower, Flaherty said.

The incident is believed to be gang related.

Members of Jacobs' family moved him from Bellflower to Las Vegas shortly after the shooting, Flaherty said.

They registered him for classes at the high school in April, according to school records, Flaherty said.