‘We need your help’: $10,000 reward offered for tips that lead to arrest of third suspect in Florida triple homicide
By Michelle Watson and Zoe Sottile, CNN
Officials are offering a total of $10,000 for information that leads to the arrest of 16-year-old Tahj Brewton, the third suspect sought in connection with the recent shooting deaths of three Florida teenagers.
The Florida Sheriff’s Association Criminal Apprehension Assistance Program and the US Marshals Service are offering $5,000 each — for a total of $10,000 — for tips that lead to Brewton’s capture, according to a Friday Facebook post from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
Three teenagers were found shot in Marion County in Central Florida at the end of March. Police have named one of the victims as 16-year-old Layla Silvernail, who was found on the side of the road in the Forest Lakes Park area on March 30 and later died of her injuries. A 17-year-old male was found on the side of the road the next morning, and a third female victim was found in the trunk of Silvernail’s car, which was partially submerged in a lake. Police have not named the other two victims.
The three suspects are all teenagers as well. Police have said they believe the victims and the suspects were allegedly affiliated with criminal gangs.
Robert Le’Andrew Robinson, 17, and Christopher De’l Atkins, 12, have already been arrested and charged with first-degree murder, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said Friday. Brewton is still at large, and “this is where we need your help,” the sheriff’s office said.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office released a photo of Brewton on Facebook. He is also wanted in connection with several unrelated felonies, including carjacking with a firearm, aggravated assault, and grand theft of a motor vehicle.
Brewton should be considered “armed and dangerous,” according to the sheriff’s office.
The sheriff’s office advised those with information to call (352) 732-9111 or the Crime Stoppers of Marion County at (352) 368-STOP (7867), “and reference 23-22 in your tip.”
CNN has reached out for comment. It is not clear if the suspects will be tried in the juvenile or adult system.
The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2023 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.
