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VIA WTOP:

Police continue to investigate the murder of a Ballou High School senior who interned for D.C. Council member Michael Brown.

The body of Alonte Sutton, 18, of Southeast was pulled out of a ravine in a wooded area near the 200 block of Newcomb Street in Southeast Sunday morning. The area is near Malcolm X Avenue.

Police confirmed the identity of the body Monday afternoon.

Capt. Michael Farish says 911 calls on Saturday reported gun shots at Newcomb Street. The next day, as police investigated a missing person report, they learned Sutton had been chased into the woods, where officers found him.

Farish says police are interviewing witnesses and have identified a person of interest in the case. He says Sutton and the suspect were acquaintances and had at least one argument before the shooting.

Brown describes Sutton as one of the “best shining star interns.”

Brown says Sutton served in the first class of City Council interns, working in Brown’s office last summer. Sutton was set to graduate in a few weeks.

“You can’t even put your arms around it,” Brown tells WTOP. “Especially for a kid who was doing everything right. One of the best interns in the whole building. We were proud to have him. It’s devastating, absolutely crushing.”

Sutton was recommended for a competitive, year-long internship this year, and worked a few hours after school several days a week.

“He’s going to be missed, not just by me and my office,” Brown says. “I think he clearly earned the respect of his peers and the professionals around the building who liked his work. It’s just so tragic that something like this would happen.”

Family members tell The Washington Post that witnesses told them Sutton had been on Newcomb Street putting tires on a car. They say he ended up in a dispute with a man after refusing to give the man’s girlfriend a ride.

They say the man returned to the scene with a gun and opened fire. Sutton took off into the woods.

Police started a search for Sutton after receiving the missing person’s report.

“While investigating this report, members received information that the missing person had been seen the day before in the 200 block of Newcomb Street SE being chased into a wooded area by a suspect who was shooting at him. This information was consistent with a report of the sound of gunshots in the area that police had responded to on the previous day.” a police news release says.

Sutton’s body, found at the bottom of a steep incline, had been shot several times. Police found him about 10:50 a.m. Sunday.

Anyone with information in the case is asked to call police at 202-727-9099 or 1-888-919-2746.

Anonymous information can be called into D.C. Crime Solvers at 1-866-411-TIPS or sent by text to 50411. Crime Solvers offers rewards of up to $1,000 for information that leads to an arrest and conviction.

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