Skyline High football player fatally shot in East Oakland
OAKLAND >> A Skyline High School football player was fatally shot in East Oakland on Sunday afternoon, according to police and his coach. Police have not yet released his name but Skyline High head football Coach Joe Bates identified him as Aaron Pryor.
He was found shot at about 3:40 p.m. Sunday in the 5800 block of Elizabeth Street in the Melrose neighborhood by officers responding to reports of gunfire. The youth was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police have not released a motive for the shooting and have not announced any arrests. In comments Monday, Skyline High’s Bates mourned the loss of
Pryor, who had enrolled in August and joined the team as a running back.
“My boys are hurting … I’m hurting,” the football coach tweeted.
Bates, in an interview with this news organization, praised Pryor not just as a respected “superstar athlete” and former Oakland Junior Raiders team member, but a young man who grew up in the same neighborhood he did.
“He was extremely motivated,” Bates said. “He would send direct messages on Instagram to say, ‘ hey, coach, I know I’m not a captain, but I just want to let you know I’m coming for that captain role.’ He’d also send group chat messages to team members to motivate them for local park workouts. He took on roles and had high expectations.”
“It’s a tragic time with young people not in school but in the virtual sector, and some running around bored,” Bates said. “I saw the same influences in that area, but there are fewer adults around now than then. We had a lot of older men guiding us for the most part, especially if we had something good going on, we were protected.”
The killing is the 77th homicide investigated by Oakland police this year and the fifth since Thursday afternoon. Last year at this time police had investigated 59 homicides in the city.
Police and Crime Stoppers of Oakland are offering up to $10,000 reward for information. Anyone with information may call police at 510-238-3821 or 510-2387950 or Crime Stoppers at 510-777-8572.