Two found with gun at site of Cumberland school shooting

Two days after a Cape Fear High School student was shot at school, Cumberland County deputies arrested two Fayetteville men Wednesday morning after finding a handgun in a car on the school's campus.

Deputies became suspicious after noticing a multi-colored Honda hatchback in the school's rear parking lot, and a search of the car turned up the gun in the glovebox, authorities said.

Canaan Maliek Wynder, 19, of Cedar Creek Road, and Tristen Gibbs, 18, of 126 Bladen Circle, were charged with possession of a firearm on school property. Both are graduates of Cape Fear High, and Wynder told deputies that he was dropping his girlfriend off at school.

The campus wasn't locked down, and no one was in danger because of the incident, authorities said.

Wynder and Gibbs were questioned by federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agents, authorities said.

On Monday, Catilyn Abercrombie, 15, was shot in the neck as she stood in a breezeway outside the school cafeteria.

She underwent surgery Monday night, but her condition worsened Tuesday. She was placed on a ventilator to help her breathe, and at last check, she was listed in critical condition but has been moved from Cape Fear Valley Medical Center to an undisclosed location.

Students and other supporters planned a walk in Abercrombie's honor at 7 p.m. Wednesday, starting at the library across from Cape Fear High down to nearby Mac Williams Middle School and back. A prayer circle was to follow the walk.

Two other Cape Fear High students were arrested Monday night and charged in the shooting.

A 15-year-old is charged with attempted first-degree murder and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. He was in custody in the Cumberland County Juvenile Detention Center. He will face a juvenile court hearing sometime in the next week, but no decision has been made on whether to try him as an adult.

Ta'Von McLaurin, 18, of 1408 Rhone St. in Fayetteville, is charged with felonious aiding and abetting. He made his first court appearance Tuesday afternoon and is being held in the Cumberland County Detention Center under a $280,000 secured bond.

Authorities have said that they don't think Abercrombie was the intended target, but investigators haven't yet determined the motive for the shooting.

School security video showed two students carrying a .22-caliber rifle into Cape Fear High, authorities said. The students were either in the hallway with the door open or outside the breezeway where Abercrombie was walking.

Although Daisy, the manufacturer of the rifle, also makes pellet guns, authorities said the weapon investigators found at the school was a traditional rifle.

Security at Cape Fear High was beefed up Tuesday and Wednesday to calm jittery parents and students. All students were required to pass through metal detectors to get into school.

About one-third of the students at Cape Fear High and about 10 percent of the students at Mac Williams Middle were out of class Tuesday as fearful parents kept them at home.

Cape Fear High reported 28 violent acts at school during the 2009-10 school year, the most recent year for which statistics are available. The rate of two violent acts per 100 students is average for Cumberland County schools.