A third juvenile suspect wanted in connection with the shooting deaths of three teenagers in Marion County has been arrested.
On Saturday, April 8, the United States Marshals Service located the third suspect, 16-year-old Tahj Brewton, near the city of Groveland. Brewton was arrested on outstanding warrants for carjacking with a firearm, aggravated assault, grand theft of a motor vehicle, fleeing or attempting to elude a law enforcement officer, and tampering with an electronic monitoring device, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
Brewton’s arrest comes days after two juvenile suspects, 12-year-old Christopher De’l Atkins and 17-year-old Robert Le’Andrew Robinson, were taken into custody and charged with first-degree murder in connection with the fatal shooting of three teenagers in Ocklawaha.
On Thursday, March 30, shortly after 10:50 p.m., MCSO deputies responded to the area of Forest Lakes Park on SE 183rd Avenue Road in Ocklawaha in reference to an injured female who was laying on the side of the road.
Upon arrival, deputies located a 16-year-old girl, later identified as Layla Silvernail, who had been shot. She was transported to a local hospital in critical condition, and she was later pronounced deceased.
The following day, at approximately 7:55 a.m., a 17-year-old boy was found deceased on the side of the road in the area of SE 94th Street and SE 188th Court in Ocklawaha. He had sustained a fatal gunshot wound. According to MCSO, his name has not been released at the request of his next of kin.
On Saturday, April 1, at around 12:40 p.m, the body of a third shooting victim, 16-year-old Camille Quarles, was found in the trunk of a 2015 Chevrolet Cruze. The vehicle was partially submerged at the edge of a pond in the area of Malauka Loop and Malauka Loop Trace in Ocklawaha.
In a social media post on Sunday, April 9, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office stated that the homicide investigation is ongoing and “additional charges are forthcoming.”