Published on: Thursday, May 06, 2010

By Paige L. Hill

Montgomery County Police charged three teenagers with first-degree murder in the April 14 death of D.C. Principal Brian Betts at an arraignment Tuesday in Rockville. Montgomery County police say Betts may have contacted one or more of the teens through a sex chat hotline Adam4Adam and invited one or more of them to his Silver Spring home. But police are still trying to piece together what occurred between then and when Betts was found shot to death the following evening.

Police arrested Alante Saunders, Sharif Lancaster and Deontra Gray, all 18, after raiding a home where Lancaster’s mother, Autura Williams, resides. There, they found Betts’ stolen property, including his wallet, which one of the teens had put his own identification in, charging documents state. Police were tipped off when Williams, 46, used Betts’ credit card at a Silver Spring Giant Food grocery store last Friday. She was arrested Monday and charged with using a stolen credit card.

Lancaster’s fingerprints were found inside Betts’ home, and Saunders’ fingerprints were found inside Betts’ abandoned vehicle, county Police Chief Thomas Manger said at a press conference Monday. Police arrested Saunders and Lancaster Monday morning and arrested Gray later in the day he told police he was at Betts’ home the night of the murder, according to charging documents.

Police charged Saunders and Lancaster with first-degree murder, armed robbery and the use of a handgun in a felony crime of violence. Gray was charged with first-degree murder, armed robbery and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.

District Court Judge Eugene Wolfe denied all three men bond Tuesday afternoon. The men are being detained at the Montgomery County Detention Center. They participated in the arraignment via video conference and said nothing more than “thank you” to Wolfe. A public defender will represent all three men.

Relatives of the teens attended the arraignment and stood before Wolfe. Lancaster’s father Michael Lancaster and his sister watched as Sharif Lancaster was denied bond.

“These charges are fictitious,” Michael Lancaster said, putting on his sunglasses. “He had nothing to do with it! I don’t even know these other guys,” he said, apparently making reference to Saunders and Gray.

A woman who identified herself as the mother of Alante Saunders also attended the arraignment. She fidgeted in the courtroom, holding hands with her husband, Saunders’ stepfather. After Wolfe denied Saunders bond, the couple left the courtroom and she began to cry.

 “He didn’t kill nobody,” she said, refusing to give her name. When asked how she knew this, she replied, “Because he’s my son.”

According to county police, all three men have been in and out of the juvenile delinquent system for years. Lancaster has been appearing in juvenile court since he was 16, charging documents state. He was previously charged with carrying a pistol without a license, theft and fleeing from a law-enforcement officer. Lancaster spent seven months in a detention center and was released to his mother in April 2009, according to the documents.

According to charging documents, Saunders’ criminal history dates to 2003, when he was charged with a first-degree sex offense as an 11-year-old. And in 2005, he was charged with attempting to rob a woman in D.C.

 In 2008, Saunders was charged with theft and was ordered to be held in a D.C. Department of Youth and Rehabilitation Services. Saunders was later moved to a less-secure rehabilitation facility but escaped around April 1 of this year — just two weeks before Betts was killed. Calls made to both facilities were not returned.

Gray was already being sought by D.C. police for failing to appear in Superior Court last month after his January arrest for unlawful entry, according to charging documents. Police arrested and charged Gray with burglary in 2008, according to charging documents. He spent a month at an unnamed juvenile detention center.

All three trials are scheduled for May 20.

Even before county police commented on Betts’ sexual orientation, several  D.C.-area LGBT groups, like Gays and Lesbians Opposing Violence (GLOV), issued warnings last week urging those living in Maryland and D.C. communities to be cautious when using social-networking sites, chat lines and online chat rooms. Manger said in the press conference Monday that the site could have been used to target Betts. Calls made to Adam4Adam were not returned.

“In light of the recent murders, GLOV has reason to believe that gay men who arrange sexual encounters through websites, chat rooms or apps may be being targeted for violent crime,” the April 23 GLOV advisory states.