ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, July 7, 1996 TAG: 9607080096
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: ALEXANDRIA
SOURCE: Associated Press
A teen-ager who was stabbed to death last week was described by friends as a quiet youth who had dropped out of school and worked hard to help support his family.
Sixteen-year-old Romulo ``Eric'' Ardila was killed in a fight between rival gangs Wednesday near George Washington Middle School in Alexandria.
Another 16-year-old, who police have not identified, has been charged with the slaying.
Ardila dropped out of T.C. Williams High School last fall, where he had been a sophomore.
He took it on himself to raise his three younger brothers because his father had remained in Venezuela, said Soleiman Mastamandi, 17, who met Ardila almost two years ago when both had jobs delivering Domino's pizzas. Ardila also took on odd jobs to make more money: at Domino's, McDonald's and, recently, at an Arlington gas station.
``He lived for his family. He said, `My brothers are my love,''' Mastamandi said. ``He was a bright kid. He could have done anything he wanted. He wasn't going to work at McDonald's or a gas station for the rest of his life. He wanted to go back to school.''
But Ardila did more than work, he also befriended members of the Los Bravos gang before moving from Alexandria to Franconia last fall, friends said.
A law enforcement source told The Washington Post that Ardila was on probation and had several traffic violations. ``He certainly was not a major player,'' said the source, who follows local gangs.
Latino activists and law enforcement officials said Ardila's death followed a showdown between members of Los Bravos, formed about three years ago and believed to have 10 to 20 members, and Latin Homies, a more recently formed group that police said they knew little about.
Police spokesman Amy Bertsch said investigators are sifting through conflicting accounts about what led up to the slaying.
``It's going to take a lot of work to piece it all together,'' Bertsch said. ``Some witnesses think they know what happened, and the people who were involved have their own opinions.''
One account being investigated by police was that the fatal fight grew out of an argument between two young people at summer school.
As word spread Tuesday and Wednesday that a battle was brewing, young Latinos said members of several area youth gangs went to George Washington to watch - and potentially support - Los Bravos and Latin Homies, who were expected to brawl Wednesday.
Police first were summoned midmorning Wednesday, when Latino youths began milling outside the school, Bertsch said. Neighbors have said they saw youths hitting each other with cinder blocks.
Ardila's friends didn't care much for the publicity that has surrounded him since his death.
``Everybody cares about him when he's dead,'' Mastamandi said. ``When he's alive, only his friends and family cared about him. That's how this world works.''
LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: (headshot) Ardila KEYWORDS: FATALITYby CNB