A suspect in the assault of two students at an Annapolis school was in possession of heroin, police said Friday.
Rondell Alexander Franklin, 18, of Annapolis, ran from police after school officials reported that he and two friends punched a male and a female student in the faces as they were trying to get on a school bus at the Phoenix Center Thursday. School officials declined comment.
The victims, who are both 16, said they took the wrong school bus and were walking back toward the school building to wait for their correct bus when they were attacked. The students did not see who attacked them and never saw a gun or other weapon, police said.
No assault charges could be filed because the victims, whose names were not released, did not cooperate with police or give a possible reason for the assault, said Cpl. Jennifer Crews-Carey, spokeswoman for the Annapolis police.
The three suspects, who are not students at the school, were playing basketball on school property and were asked to leave moments before the assault, Crews-Carey said.
When police arrived on the scene, the suspects fled into a wooded and residential area around Admiral Drive and Poplar Ave., and both the Phoenix Learning Center and nearby Germantown Elementary School were placed on lockdown while a search was conducted.
Franklin and Joel Lanier Dickerson, 18, of Annapolis were charged with trespassing on school grounds. Franklin also was charged with possession of drugs with the intent to distribute. He is currently being held at the county Detention Center on a $35,000 bond.
The police are still trying to identify the third suspect.
