By The Associated Press
LAS VEGAS — Tight security greeted high school students Wednesday as police searched for the gunmen who wounded six young people at a school bus stop, an attack that officials believe stemmed from a fight about a girl.
The six were wounded Tuesday shortly after a group of Mojave High School students got off a school bus in a working-class neighborhood in northeastern Las Vegas.
The investigation remained focused Wednesday at Mojave, but security also was increased elsewhere, said Clark County School District police Sgt. Ken Young.
''We’ve got extra officers at several high schools,’' Young said.
Police were search for at least two suspects. The attackers were believed to have fled the scene of the shooting on foot.
Police said they believed the shooting was linked to a fight at Mojave earlier in the day Tuesday. The brawl had been contained by school police, who arrested three male students, all about 16, officials said.
Sheriff Doug Gillespie did not describe how he believed the incidents were connected. The fight at the school did not appear to be gang or race-related, he said.
''At this point, the indicators that we have found ... it’s a dispute over a girlfriend,’' Gillespie told reporters.
An 18-year-old male was in critical condition late Tuesday and a 17-year-old boy was upgraded from critical to serious condition, both with gunshot wounds to the torso, said Cheryl Persinger, a University Medical Center spokeswoman.
Four people, including at least two boys and a girl who are under 18, were treated for gunshot wounds to their arms and legs and were released, she said. All four are students at Mojave High who had just stepped off the bus, which was coming from the school, police said.
Authorities would not release any other information about the two victims who were still hospitalized, including whether they were students or had been on the bus.
Police believe the attackers had been waiting at the bus stop. Gillespie said the shooting did not appear to be random.
Investigators said they found 9 mm and .45-caliber shell casings at the scene.When officers arrived, several witnesses ran away, police said.
Officials said the district would have counselors available at the school Wednesday.
''I think the No. 1 question on many people’s minds tonight is `Is it safe to send my kids to school tomorrow?’'' Gillespie said Tuesday. ''The answer is yes. I am a father, I have a daughter and she will be attending school tomorrow.’'
Mojave had some 2,300 students last year, about evenly divided among blacks, whites and Hispanics, according to district materials.
The shooting occurred just before 2 p.m., a couple of blocks from two elementary schools. Both were locked down temporarily but reopened in about an hour, district spokesman Michael Rodriguez said.
Associated Press writer Ryan Nakashima contributed to this report.