Dartmouth teen to be charged with 1st-degree murder of Joseph Douglas Cameron

A 17-year-old male arrested in London, Ont., is to becharged with first degree murder in the Dartmouth, N.S., shooting death of Joseph Douglas Cameron.

Cameron, 20, was found dead on the sidewalk in the early morning hours of March 29 after Halifax police responded to a report of shots fired in the area of Spring Avenue and Mount Edward Road.

The 17-year-old accused, who is from Dartmouth,was arrested yesterday afternoonwithout incident,with the helpof the London policeand Ontario'sRepeat Offender Parole Enforcement Squad.

He will be returned to Nova Scotia to appear in Halifax provincial youth court at a later date to face the first-degree murder charge and unspecified weapons charges.

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"We're in the process of making arrangements to transport this youth back to Halifax ... to travel back to Halifax today," Supt. Jim Perrin said at a news conference Friday morning.

"Investigators have known, or suspected, the accused was in this area."

Perrin said the suspect and the victim knew each other, and the suspect was known to police.

Cameron's shooting was followed by a string of gun-related deaths in the Halifax area, but Perrin said there is "no reason to believe" this homicide was connected to any others.

"We anticipate there are other charges that could be laid," he said, adding more people could face charges in Cameron's death as well.

Family suffering

He would not give any more details.

"We don't discuss motive. We are pleased to announce that we brought the investigation to the point where we could lay charges," he said.

"The family is going through an extremely difficult time. We hope this brings them a measure of comfort."

Earlier Thursday, Halifax policearrested a 17-year-old boyat a residence on Spring Avenue, but after questioning he was releasedwithout charges.