Kayden Romo was about to graduate from the eighth grade at Bear Valley Middle School in Escondido when he was killed June 3
A boy fatally stabbed in a street fight in Escondido earlier this month was a 14-year-old who was just days from graduating middle school when he was killed.
In fundraising appeals, family members identified the boy as Kayden Romo Daniels and also as Kayden Alan Romo. The teen was an eighth-grader at Bear Valley Middle School when he was killed June 3.
Police said the boy was stabbed when two groups clashed in a residential street and collapsed while running from the fight on Wanek Road, off Valley Parkway. He died at a hospital.
Several days after the fight, which police said was gang-related, officers arrested two teenage boys. Two pistols, a rifle and a knife were recovered when two Escondido homes were searched, police said.
A 16-year-old boy has been charged with murder and an allegation that it was done to benefit a gang. His next hearing is July 10, according to a spokesperson with the county District Attorney’s Office. A 17-year-old faces a charge of assault with a deadly weapon and a gang allegation, as well as charges of possessing an unregistered firearm and being a minor in possession of a firearm and ammunition. He is due back in court on June 24.
Rick Brule, the victim’s grandfather, told Fox 5 that Kayden was hanging out with friends around the corner from the family home when they encountered another group of teens.
“There were some individuals that went after a couple of friends of his that he knew from school and got in a fight and somebody attacked him and stabbed him,” Brule told the station. “He didn’t even know these guys.”
Cheri Brule, Kayden’s grandmother, is organizing one of the GoFundMe appeals, which includes the words “Kayden Gone Too Soon” and “Forever 14.” Funds will go to his mother, Dani Mackett, and his family, Brule said.
“Through these gestures of compassion and kindness, we aim to extend a heartfelt embrace to Kayden’s mother and family, reminding them that they are not alone in their sorrow, and that their community stands beside them with unwavering support and love,” she wrote.
A second GoFundMe is being organized by Samone Romo on behalf of Kayden’s father, Troy Romo. “Kayden was about to graduate from 8th grade when his life was suddenly and senselessly cut short… Please pray for Troy and his daughter, Daisy and all the other family members and friends,” Samone Romo wrote.