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4th Suspect Arrested in Boy’s Death : Calabasas: The 17-year-old is thought to have been present when James Farris III, 16, was stabbed. He surrenders to deputies and is booked into Juvenile Hall.

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TIMES STAFF WRITER

A fifth suspect in the May 22 stabbing death of 16-year-old James Farris III in Agoura Hills surrendered to Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies Friday evening, even as homicide investigators awaited the signing of a warrant for the juvenile’s arrest, deputies said.

The 17-year-old boy walked into the Lost Hills sheriff’s station accompanied by his attorney about 6:20 p.m., said Deputy Diane Hecht.

He was booked on suspicion of murder and taken to Sylmar Juvenile Hall, Hecht said.

The youth, from the Agoura area, according to Detective Bill Neumann, became the fourth suspect in custody.

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Also sought in connection with the killing is 18-year-old Jason Holland of Thousand Oaks, who is still at large despite pleas from his mother, Sharry Holland, to turn himself in.

A 15-year-old Thousand Oaks boy, a 17-year-old from Agoura Hills and 18-year-old Brandon Hein of Oak Park have pleaded not guilty in the death of James, the son of Los Angeles Police Detective James Farris II.

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Although Holland’s name had been publicly mentioned as a suspect, Neumann said the 17-year-old arrested Friday was “somebody that we’ve been looking at and developing information on throughout the investigation” but who had not been named before as a suspect.

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“We hadn’t interviewed him,” Neumann said. “We made several attempts to locate him, and he kind of disappeared.”

Detectives applied for an arrest warrant for the boy on Thursday, he said.

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The youth is believed to have been present when James was killed and James’ friend, Mike McLoren, also 16, was wounded, Neumann said.

The incident began during an altercation at the “fort” or “clubhouse” where Mike lived in the back yard of his family’s home. Police have said it was a robbery attempt, but defense attorneys contend it was a drug deal gone bad.

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Deputies arrived at the home about 7:30 that night to find James collapsed and Mike wounded in the kitchen of the main house.

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