OAKLAND PARK, FLA. (WSVN) - Frantic 911 calls from an apparent caretaker have been released days after a teen fatally stabbed a 14-year-old at a group home in Oakland Park.
Jordan Dowdy, 14, was fatally stabbed by Ruben Whitworth, 16, Monday afternoon in the 5400 block of Northeast Third Avenue.
Both teens lived at the foster home, and while they were friends, Dowdy’s mother said he told her he’d been having issues with Whitworth.
“Jordan asked him one day, ‘Ruben, would you like some mozzarella sticks?’ and he told [my son], ‘No, shut the ‘F’ up, or I’m going to stab you and kill you.’ Two weeks later, he ended up dead,” said Simpson.
Simpson has nine other children, all of which are in some form of foster care.
“And they’re like, ‘Oh, well you just can’t control them,’ and they took them from me,” said Simpson. “They took all my children, not just Jordan, all of them.”
Officials suspect the stabbing stemmed from a verbal and physical altercation with Dowdy.
According to the emergency call, the caretaker witnessed and broke up the fight.
“Can you send me law enforcement and send me paramedics, please?” said the caretaker. “I need paramedics immediately.”
“Where was he stabbed?” asked a dispatcher.
“I don’t see the knife right now, I had to break it up and I had to get involved with this situation,” said the caretaker.
He could be heard trying to keep Dowdy conscious.
“Talk to me. Are you with me?” the caretaker can be heard saying to Dowdy.
Friends and family held a candlelight vigil outside the group home on Wednesday night.
Loved ones were seen embracing each other and praying together in honor of a life taken too soon.
Tiffany Simpson, Dowdy’s mother, spoke about her son’s unwavering love for his family, likewise theirs for him.
“Everybody that’s here for him, I want to say thank you for just this little bit of time. I know each and every one of us loved him and he loved each and every one of us, unconditionally,” said Tiffany Simpson.
Whitworth is expected to appear in court next month.
Dowdy’s family said his funeral will be held sometime next week.
A GoFundMe has been created to cover the funeral expenses to lay Dowdy to rest. If you would like to donate, click here.
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