A fifth teen has been charged in the beating death of Fenger High School student Derrion Albert, authorities said tonight.
Lapoleon Colbert, 19, was charged today with first-degree murder in connection to the Sept. 24 death in front of a Roseland community center, according to Sally Daly, a spokeswoman for the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.
Colbert, who another law enforcement source said was of the 0-99 block of West 113th Street, is expected to appear for a bond hearing Wednesday at the Cook County Criminal Courts Building.
Footage of Albert’s death, captured on a camcorder, caused a firestorm after it was circulated over the Internet and to news outlets nationwide.
Daly said that Colbert’s image was captured on a videotape of the attack, but she could not say if he was seen on the widely publicized camcorder tape.
Albert’s death, part of a melee between neighborhood teens and those who lived in the Altgeld Gardens-area, prompted U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Education Secretary Arne Duncan to visit Chicago last October to talk about what the Obama administration is doing to combat youth violence.
Already charged with murder in Albert’s death are Silvonus Shannon, 19, Eugene Riley, 18, Eric Carson, 16, and a 14-year-old boy charged as a juvenile.