Suspect charged in Wiley College student slaying

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Tuesday, September 16, 2014

MARSHALL, TX -- An East Texas man has been charged in the fatal shooting of a Wiley College student during an off-campus argument that left another student wounded.

A Marshall police arrest affidavit says the dispute allegedly involved gambling and money owed.

Harrison County jail records show 19-year-old Javonte Damone Sanders of Marshall was being held Tuesday on a murder charge with bond at $1 million. Records don't list an attorney for Sanders, who's charged in Saturday's death of 22-year-old Wesley Blackmon of Houston.

Wiley College spokeswoman Tammy Taylor said Tuesday that the incident happened during an unsanctioned, off-campus function. She says Blackmon was a transfer student on the basketball team. Taylor says the wounded male student is recovering.

Wiley College is a liberal arts school in Marshall, 140 miles southeast of Dallas.

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