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Charges added in case involving teen shot in back
0203SHOOTINGJulisa Canales-Vasquez
Julisa Canales-Vasquez

More teenagers were charged in an incident Saturday night involving a teenager shot in the back, according to authorities.

Four teens were driving after 8 p.m. Saturday around Candler Highway and Tanners Mill Road when one passenger allegedly fired the gun.

“The round struck the vehicle’s front seat passenger in the back,” Hall County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Deputy Chad Mann said in a news release. “The teens subsequently attempted to take the injured teen to the Quick Care, near the (Wal-Mart) in Oakwood, for treatment.”

The business was closed, and 17-year-old Sergio Salamanca, of Gainesville, allegedly “jumped from the vehicle and fled the area on foot,” Mann wrote.

The others allegedly flagged down an Oakwood Police officer for assistance, according to authorities. The victim was taken to Northeast Georgia Medical Center for treatment.

The victim’s condition was not listed.

Salamanca was initially charged with reckless conduct and had a hold on him for escape charges related to the Department of Juvenile Justice.

“The Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice has had no escapes,” the department’s spokesman Jim Shuler said Tuesday.

Mann said investigators now believe Sergio Canales-Vasquez, 17, of Gainesville, was allegedly “in possession of the firearm at the time it was fired.”

Salamanca’s reckless conduct charge was dismissed.

“However, during the ensuing investigation, the firearm used in the crime was located and determined to be stolen during a previous burglary with Hall County,” Mann wrote.

Sergio Canales-Vasquez and Salamanca were charged with two counts of first-degree burglary, according to authorities. Canales-Vasquez also faces charges of reckless conduct, making false statements and discharging a handgun near a public highway, according to the news release.

Julisa Canales-Vasquez, 18, of Gainesville, was also charged with making false statements. She posted a bond and declined to comment Tuesday.

Sergio Canales-Vasquez and Salamanca remained in the Hall County Jail on Tuesday.

The investigation is ongoing.