Christopher Atkins and Robert Robinson have been indicted over the murders of three teenagers in Ocklawaha, Florida. Atkins, who is just 12, and Robinson, 17, were charged following the discovery of the bodies of Layla Silvernail, 16, Camille Quarles, 16, and Michael Hodo Jr, 17. A third suspect, Tahj Brewton, 16, was arrested and charged days later after going on the run. They will be tried as adults, which makes Atkins one of the youngest-ever children charged with murder.
Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods has claimed that all six were in a burglary gang, and hours before the deaths of the teens, the two suspects robbed a man at gunpoint. The six kids are alleged to have been travelling together in Layla’s car to carry out a series of thefts. “There’s no honour among thieves.
At some point, these three individuals turned on our three victims and murdered them,” said Sheriff Woods. “They fled the scene, but left a lot of evidence. Not only are the victims juveniles, but the murderers are juveniles, as well.” Robinson claimed that Layla was going to betray them, according to reports. “She was going to snitch on us all. We was all going to jail for life,” he said.
Sheriff Woods fought back tears at a press conference as he spoke about having to “stare into the eyes” of the young suspects’ mothers. “He said, “I put myself in the shoes of those mothers because I heard one of them say, ‘I wish I would have known what this one was doing and who they were, because my kid never would have hung out with them’.”
The body of Layla, an “amazing ath
