San Diego

An 18-year-old Mira Mesa night school student was shot to death during a fight with a classmate near Mason Elementary School in the 10000 block of Arrow Rock Avenue, police said Wednesday.

Maru Angelo Sharpe of San Diego was dead on arrival shortly after 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at Sharp Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, the county coroner’s office said. He had been shot once in the chest with a small-caliber handgun, police said.

A 17-year-old youth was arrested in connection with the shooting and booked into Juvenile Hall on a murder charge, according to Lt. Dan Berglund of the homicide division. The teen-ager came home after the shooting, told his mother he had been in a fight and he thought he had shot someone, and she called police, Berglund said.

Sharpe and two male students and one female student had gone to dinner after class at the adult school of Mira Mesa High let out about 7:30 p.m. They were dropping off the girl at Mason Elementary School near her home, Berglund said. When Sharpe continued talking to the girl, the driver of the car became irritated at having to wait, and words were exchanged between the two, Berglund said.

A fist fight broke out, and Sharpe beat up the teen-ager, who then threatened to kill Sharpe and drove away, Berglund said. Sharpe, the girl and the other male classmate walked across the street and continued their conversation until the suspect returned about 15 minutes later and shot Sharpe once in the chest, he said.

Sharpe lived with his father, Richard, in the 9000 block of Sawtooth Way in San Diego.