16-year-old high school student arrested, charged in Germantown shooting

GERMANTOWN, Md. — Police have arrested a 16-year-old high school student in connection to a shooting in Germantown back in March. Montgomery County Police say the teenager is being charged as an adult with attempted first-degree murder for shooting at a 15-year-old boy as he got off a school bus.

The shooting happened on March 13, in the 19300 block of Archdale Road, near Fox Chapel Elementary School. Detectives believe Jaiden Ochieng arrived there in a stolen Hyundai, got out of the car and chased after the 15-year-old. Then, Ochieng allegedly pulled out a gun and shot at the victim, who was not hurt. Ochieng left the scene after firing the gun. 

When officers arrived to investigate what happened, they found two shell casings nearby.

Through the course of the investigation, detectives identified Ochieng as a suspect and obtained an arrest warrant for him. In addition to the attempted murder charge, the boy is also charged with first degree assault and theft related charges. 

Officers arrested the boy on Sept. 6 in Germantown. Officers recovered a stolen, loaded handgun that Ochieng tossed before he was taken into custody. Firearm charges were added following his arrest.

He is currently being held without bond.

WUSA9 confirmed Ochieng was a student at Northwest High School. In a letter to families, Principal Scott E Smith said the shooting did not occur on campus.

>>The full letter is below:

Dear Northwest High School Families,

I write this evening to make you aware of very unfortunate news concerning the arrest of one of our students. We were made aware of a Montgomery County Police Department news release concerning a community incident not related to our school. We are alarmed at what the police have discovered and while this did not occur on school campus, we know this information can be concerning.

The safety and security of our students remain our top priority. We continue to work every day with our partners in the MCPS Department of School Safety and Emergency Management and the Montgomery County Police Department to ensure that we are providing a safe environment for our students and staff.

As your principal and a school system leader in Montgomery County Public Schools, I am aware of the rise in violence in our community and across the nation. Our students are aware of these instances, too, and in addition to the support we provide for students on a daily basis, MCPS has a great deal of mental health, wellness and crisis support measures in place for use during times of need.

 However, If your child requires immediate mental health support, whether due to this incident or not,
please use the following resources:

 If you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact me via email at
Scott_E_Smith@mcpsmd.org.

 Sincerely,

 Mr. Scott E. Smith
Principal