The five boys are all from Oakland and they are all friends. Police believe they are not tied to any gangs. But all of them are being tied to Boyd's murder.
Boyer, 34, was shot in the head while driving his car in the Oakland hills on April 2. Police say someone in another vehicle fired at Boyer, striking him at least twice before his car uprooted a tree as it went off the road, crashing into this ravine. Immediately after officers arrived, they began canvassing the neighborhood for clues treating this case as a homicide.
Police believe they have identified the shooter and that he is in custody. Chief Howard Jordan is unnerved by the suspects ages.
"This is a disturbing trend that we've noticed here in this city. That far too often, in recent past, we've noticed that the age of the suspects involved in many violent crime, including robberies have now ranged between 13 to 17," said Jordan. "This, again, is unacceptable and I call on the parents, the school district, adults to help change the cycle. The vicious cycle that has taken place in this city; where young men and women are finding it very easy, very comfortable, to point a gun at someone and pull the trigger. That is just intolerable and will not be accepted."
Jordan said his department worked tirelessly to identify the suspects and make an arrest. They also credit the community whose tips led them the vehicle, they believe, was used during the murder.
The arrests were announced shortly after the memorial service for Boyer, who was a Santa Clara County paramedic. The service was held in Oakland. He and his wife would have celebrated their second anniversary next week.
At a meeting Tuesday night, the Sequoyah Hills Neighborhood Watch group learned that their PSO, or problem solving officer, along with others, helped spot the suspect vehicle which led to the arrest.
"We have a walking citizen's patrol and now we're getting ready to have our driving citizen's patrol. There's a role for everybody in the neighborhood," said Sandi Bethune, a Sequoyah Hills neighbor.
Boyer grew up around the Sequoyah Hills Neighborhood and police say the neighbors are part of the solution because they're proactive and they communicate on a regular basis.
Police have yet to determine a motive for the shooting.
(Photo of Quinn Boyer courtesy of Angie Perez)
