A shirtless, babyfaced 12-year-old was led cuffed from a Florida police station to be transported to jail after being charged with a triple murder Thursday night.
Christopher Atkins, 12, and Robert Robinson, 17, were both hauled in and charged by the Marion County Sheriff over the deaths of three other minors whose bodies were found earlier this week.
A third suspect, Tahj Brewton, 16, is still being hunted by police, who have offered a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to his arrest.
Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods claimed the three alleged killers were in a burglary gang with the three dead teenagers who were found last week, sparkling fears of a serial killer on the loose.
“There’s no honor among thieves. At some point, these three individuals turned on our three victims and murdered them.”
Speaking at a press conference Friday, Woods said
Investigators believe that the victims were involved with burglaries and robberies, and both the victims and the suspects were allegedly affiliated with criminal gangs, Woods said.
In the video of Atkins, who was arrested at his home, he appears stony faced as he is flanked by a pair of deputies who take him to an awaiting police cruiser.
The Marion County State Attorney’s office is reviewing whether the suspects will be tried as adults, Woods said.
The office plans to “aggressively pursue the prosecution of all defendants responsible for these heinous crimes,” Walter Forgie, Marion County Chief Assistant State Attorney
On March 30, 16-year-old Layla Silvernail was found on the side of a road in the Forest Lakes Park area. She later died in a hospital from her critical injuries, the sheriff’s office said.
The next morning, shortly before 8 a.m., deputies responded to a second report of a person on the side of a road and found a 17-year-old male who had been fatally shot, authorities said.
The third victim’s body was discovered on Saturday, Woods said.
The second and third victim have not been named.
