Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - 3 TEENS MURDERED: Sheriff Swats SERIAL KILLER Talk

Episode Date: April 6, 2023

The search is on in Ocklawaha, Florida for a killer. Three teen victims, reportedly friends, were found shot. The first victim, Layla Silvernail, was found in a dumpster. She was still alive but later died at the hospital. Hours after finding Silvernail, a 17-year-old boy was found dead, miles away. He had also been shot.  The last victim, a 16-year-old girl, was found in Silvernail's vehicle, partially submerged in a pond. All three were shot.    Joining Nancy Grace Today: Randy Kessler - Atlanta Trial Lawyer, Emory Law School Professor; Past Chair ABA Family Law Section, & Author: "Divorce, Protect Yourself, Your Kids and Your Future;" Instagram: @rkessler23, Twitter: @GADivorce Dr. Dana Anderson - Forensic Psychologist & Forensic Expert Sheryl McCollum - Cold Case Investigative Research Institute Founder and Host of  "Zone 7;" Twitter: @ColdCaseTips Dr. Jan Gorniak - Medical Examiner, Clark County Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner (Las Vegas, NV); Board Certified Forensic Pathologist  Ethan Budowsky- [BUH-DOW-SKI] Multimedia Journalist for WCJB TV in Gainesville Florida; Twitter: @ethanbudowsky   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. Three teens in a tiny Florida town of only 1,500, about 60 miles from Orlando, and police are saying there's not a serial killer. Then what is it? I'm Nancy Grace.

This is Crime Stories. Thank you for being with us here at Fox Nation and Sirius XM 111. First of all, take a listen to Sheriff Billy Woods. Last Thursday night, my office responded to the area of Forest Lakes Park. When they arrived, they located a female lying beside the road suffering from a gunshot wound. The victim was transported to the hospital in critical condition and was later identified as a 16-year-old girl, whose name

I'm not going to repeat on here. Now, following morning, deputies responded to Southeast 94th Street and Southeast 188th Court, in reference to a 17-year-old male lying beside the road. He was found to be deceased from a gunshot wound. You are hearing the voice of Sheriff Billy Woods in Marion County there in Florida. From what I understand, this is not too, too far, about 60 miles northwest of Orlando. But what's the likelihood of perps coming all the way from Orlando and stalking a tiny town of 1,500 or less?

Again, thanks for being with us here at Fox Nation Series XM. We have an all-star panel, but first I want to go out to Ethan Badowski, multimedia journalist for WCJB. Ethan, thank you for being with us. I want to hear about the first, as they are found chronologically, I want to hear about that first as they are found chronologically i want to hear about that first victim uh guys take a listen to this i spoke with a teenager who says the girl who survived is named leila danielle silvernail and says they've been best friends since they were three mco officials confirmed silvernail is 16 years old. When I heard, I was stunned.

I had to go into the hallway. I kind of just broke down instantly when I heard what happened. But when I found out she was still alive, it kind of gave me hope. Schmitz says sheriff's deputies found her friend Layla in a dumpster. She also told me she has yet to go see her friend and she is unsure if she will survive. Sheriff's deputies have yet to identify the person who did this. Ethan Badowski speaking to a very dear friend since they were tiny tiny. The first victim that we know of Layla Silvernell just 16 years old when she is shot and left in a dumpster. And I was looking at photos of the dumpster, Ethan Badowski,

and it seems very close to the road. Is that correct? Yeah, it's right there on that road, and it's very unsuspecting. And, you know, when I drove past it, I just couldn't believe that, you know, the night before there was just somebody laying in there, left her dead. It was frightening, to say the least. Now, when you say it's a very unsuspecting spot, I'm looking at it, and it looks that I see the dumpster where Layla was found, left for dead.

But right behind that, it goes to a densely wooded area, but I see off to the side a clear patch of grass and a fence. Is this a rural area? What's around the dumpster? Yeah, it's a very rural area, Nancy. You know, there's, if you turn right, it starts getting into just unpaved roads. And, you know, there's woods everywhere. There's trees everywhere.

And basically that road that the dumpster is on is one lane each way. And it curves around and runs through Ockawaha and the surrounding areas. And it's a very, very rural area. There's not a lot around. There's a few restaurants and a few bars. But other than that, it's just a lot of trees and houses kind of mixed in here and there. But it is a very, very rural area. Ethan Badowski, then what is that grassy area with a fence to the left of the dumpster? To be honest, I can't exactly remember. There's kind of like, if I remember correctly, there was kind of like if i remember correctly there was kind of like a parking

lot right there um but you know it like i said it's basically just grass and trees back there and i saw a when i was there a sheriff walking around with like a metal detector almost just kind of moving their way through the weeds and the trees and the branches and stuff in there okay um searching for whatever they could. But, yeah, it doesn't seem like much is going on over there. Okay. To Cheryl McCollum, joining me, founder and director of the Cold Case Research Institute, also star of a hit podcast, Zone 7.

Cheryl McCollum, first of all, congratulations for your recent induction into the Law Enforcement Hall of Fame. That's quite an accomplishment. Cheryl the reason I'm asking is because I'm wondering if by chance that fenced area to the left is attached to some sort of business or home that could have video surveillance. And I'll tell you what they're doing with the metal detector.

They're looking for a bullet. Absolutely. If they can find a bullet and they can match it up to a gun, then you might be able to match that up to the killer. I mean, that's what, remember, when Murdoch was shot on the side of the road. And for those that can't see us, can only hear us, we're definitely using air quotas on that. Because if you find that bullet, you've got a long way to finding the killer. That's what they're doing with the metal detector.

I mean, but just think about it, Cheryl McCollum, shooting this girl and leaving her for dead in a dumpster. Absolutely. And Nancy, again, we don't know yet if she was shot in the car, outside the dumpster, or inside the dumpster. Absolutely. And Nancy, again, we don't know yet if she was shot in the car outside the dumpster or inside the dumpster. So they are trying to locate shell casings, bullets or fragments so they can piece together what weapon this came out of, if they're ever able to recover a weapon. So they're doing their due diligence. To me, when you look to the left, it looks like a cattle grate and it looks like a gate indicative of a farm of some sort. So again, what stuck out to me when I first saw this photograph is where's also to the right of the roadway. So that says to me that this may be more than one person involved to work from the passenger side, not the driver

side. If we analyze the stark similarities between these and the two other attacks, the roadway becomes very important because the second body of a male, a young teen male, I don't know how they're saying these are not connected, is found by the side of the road. Take a listen to our friends at WCBJ. Both of the people were found on the side of the road and deputies say one of them survived being shot in the head. Marion County Sheriff's deputies say they found the two people about four miles apart. A teenage girl was found last night near Forest Lakes Park on Southeast 183rd Avenue Road. The other, a man, was dead when deputies arrived early this morning. This was near Southeast 94th Street and 188th Court.

To Andy Kessler joining us, high-profile lawyer out of the Atlanta jurisdiction and law professor at esteemed Emory Law School, past chair of the ABA Family Law Section and author of Divorce, Protect Yourself, Your Kids, and Your Future. Randy, you have handled a lot of criminal cases. I remember very well standing outside the courtroom during a middle of a plea and arraignment calendar and seeing you in the distance headed toward the courtroom. Randy Kessler, we all know that Florida has the death penalty and they're not afraid to use it. In cases like this I guarantee you somebody is gonna blab because all these people know each other. Somebody's going to, and let's just hope that shows like yours help get the word out and encourage people to do the right thing, not just to punish whoever did this, but to keep the community safe.

Who's next, right? We don't know what ties these murders together, if anything, and maybe they're random. And maybe that puts everyone that lives anywhere near there at risk. So, absolutely, they're going to put the word out and hopefully somebody will speak. And it could be the death penalty for sure. Okay, Randy Kessler, that sounds more like a

public service announcement, a PSA. I'm asking you, in your expertise, as a veteran criminal defense attorney. If people start talking, if more than one person is involved, somebody is going to roll over on the shooter so they can get a lenient deal to send the shooter to the chair or I guess now the needle. One hundred percent. That's exactly how the system works right we see it in political uh prosecutions we see it in criminal prosecutions we see it all over the country whoever doesn't want to go to jail speaks up and the defense attorneys will get in line to get their client in front of the prosecutor first to cut a deal and spill what they know.

Okay, guys, it ain't over yet. Take a listen to Sheriff Billy Woods. Then on Saturday, more of my deputies responded to the area of Malacca Loop and Malacca Loop Trace in reference to information that led us to the victim's vehicle that was partially submerged at the edge of a nearby body of water. Now the members of my major crimes unit, forensic unit, and underwater team responded, collected evidence, recovered the vehicle.

After going through the vehicle, we found a third victim within the vehicle, a 16-year-old female who also had a gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene. crime stories with nancy grace let me go to ethan badowski joining us wc jb tv out of gainesville florida victim number three another teen girl is found in victim number one's car, Leila's car, partially submerged in water. Yes. Okay, so they're definitely connected. Victim three is in victim one's car, and they're submerged in water. And we're also, very carefully listened, I heard Sheriff wood state a gunshot wound so there's one gunshot

from what he's saying in victim three the 16 year old little girl yeah this was obviously shocking when i come in monday morning after the weekend and and i actually i saw sunday night that there had been a you know a big update and that they had found somebody else and it was just shocking and um you know obviously when you hear that it was the first victim's um um car your mind just races with the possibilities that could this could be and obviously now you're putting the dots together that these are connected and um it was just quite shocking and um the the area that she was in you know it's there are houses under construction all around this pond that was just out in the middle and uh all of a sudden they're pulling a car with a body out of this very you know um this area with a lot of housing that's being built right there. It's stunning.

It was absolutely stunning when this happened. Well, you know, to Dr. Dana Anderson joining us, forensic psychologist, you can find Dr. Anderson at psychologydoctor.com. Dr. Anderson, thank you for being with us. Clearly, this is someone that knows the area. They know where this off the beaten track dumpster is located. You heard Ethan Badowski from WCJB describing it turns into nothing but dirt roads surrounded by densely wooded acreage. There's that. Then as he's describing this pond sounds to me like an Ethan, please correct me if I'm wrong

it's in the middle of what looks to be a subdivision being built who would know about that being there an obscure pond in the middle of a half-built subdivision and then the middle victim and I'm speaking as we have found the victims chronologically because Dr. Jan Gorniak examiner, is going to have to explain how can you tell who was actually shot first, not who was found first, but who was shot first. This has got to be Dr. Dana Anderson, somebody that knows this area really well. I mean, think about it. Think about it, Dr. Dana Anderson. Three miles from you. Do you know about a small pond in the middle of a half-built subdivision?

I don't. Yeah, well, they may just be giving themselves away because people are opportunists, and we know what we know. And if you think about if this is somebody close in age to these teenagers, so they have limited insight or limited knowledge. They utilize resources around them and they're going to go for convenience. And if you're acting in a overtly emotional state of just you're impulsive and rageful, you're not in a planning state. You're not thinking beyond this. It's now let's just get rid, get rid of the bodies. You know, to Cheryl McCollum joining me, Director of Cold Case Research Institute.

Cheryl, the possibilities, the evidence that could be found inside that vehicle that was partially submerged, because you've got victim three in victim one's vehicle, where they both shot in that vehicle. And one was dumped in a dumpster, the other one not. This is the only one where the person isn't directly by the side of the road. Ethan Badowski, you can tell me how far from the road the pond is that you're talking about.

I'm also curious, is it a man-made pond for the purposes of that subdivision? But Cheryl McCollum, once the vehicle is partially submerged, obviously they went there to get rid of the vehicle too and the idiots left before the vehicle was totally submerged i'm also curious who tipped off police that the car was there anyway once the car is partially submerged in water any hope of getting dna and fingerprints sure it's partially submerged

so we're going to know the state of dress of the victim. There's going to be, you know, possible fingerprints on the rearview mirror, you know, DNA on the steering wheel, the windows and the outside of the doors that are still, you know, outside, not submerged in water is going to have a plethora of evidence as well. They could have possibly tossed a weapon into that pond or left it in the vehicle. That weapon would still be able to be fired. There's going to be a ton of information and evidence on that vehicle and possibly on that victim. So again, the reason that this was done the way it was suggests to me, again, these are young people. There's probably at least three of them. I think that's why there's three victims. I don't know if I agree with that, but middle-aged men, because it's typically men, older men, they all make mistakes. It's not just the young felons, baby felons. Well, Nancy, can I point out just one little thing? Sure. Each case is different. Only the

females were hidden so you have one female that was assassinated one gsw to the head thrown in a dumpster that's a very clear type of crime then you have what appears to be nothing more than a drive-by shooting then the third one you're again utilizing the victim's vehicle the first victim because you don't have a vehicle and then it's submerged in water. It's just everything changes just slightly. So it seems to me that somebody is adding to it like there's some conversation going on. I'm not so sure the second victim was a drive-by shooting, just shooting somebody on the side of the road.

I don't know about that because in both of the other cases, we find the bodies in a secondary or tertiary crime scene. That's not where they were killed. But that said, I have a hard time believing they just randomly shot somebody on the side of the road. Because I think all of these three victims knew each other, which means it's not random. It's not a random shooting off the side of the road. Ethan Badowski joining me, WCJB, is this a man-made pond? Has it always been there, time immemorial, or was it created as a focal point for the subdivision? Yeah, I believe that this was a man-made pond. It's pretty perfectly circular, and if you look

on the maps, all the other kind of lakes or ponds around it have names on them and this one doesn't um the other thing i'll say nancy is that i left out last time i spoke is that this subdivision you were talking about how far it is from the other crime scenes um i looked it up when i was there monday and i was stunned to see that it's about 20 minutes away from the other to where they the other locations where they minutes away from the other two where they the other locations where they found the bodies the other two locations were about you know four miles whatever a few miles you know within five to ten minutes but this one was 20 minutes away kind of on the other side of town so that was really when I looked that up I was like oh this is really you

know they moved all around it's got to be somebody that knows that this pond is there. It's only been recently built to accommodate the subdivision. So who would know that? First of all, the purpose of male. We all know that because of statistics. Yes, there's a remote chance it's a female or that females are involved. But statistically speaking, this is the work of a man. Guys, take a listen to this. Not a breaking news. Marion County detectives confirm the first teen victim found shot along a road has died. Deputies found Layla Silvernail shot late Thursday near Forest Lakes Park.

She was taken to the hospital with critical injuries but has since died. Deputies say hours after finding Silvernail, they found a 17-year-old boy dead just miles away. They say he had also been shot. And on Saturday, deputies found Silvernail's vehicle partially submerged in a pond east of Lake Weir. Inside, they found the body of a 16-year-old who they say had also been shot. I'm wondering if they've been able to recover the bullets or if the victims were shot through and through so there's no bullet lodged in their body. To Dr. Jan Gorniak, renowned medical examiner joining us out of Clark County, that's Vegas, board-certified forensic pathologist, medical examiner. Dr. Gorniak,

thanks so much for being with us. Is there any way to pinpoint the time of death or at least which victim was killed first? Great questions. And unfortunately, no. You know, when people are found briefly outside or in the water, you know, the elements around them are going to change their rate of decomposition. So depending on how long they were outside, how long they were in the car, was the body in water also? I'm not sure what the body was in the car. And being partially submerged doesn't mean that she, you know, was in contact with water.

But so they all could have, I mean, we can speculate all day, can't we? So it's difficult. They all could have been in the car, right, at one point, and then dumped along the way. And then, you know, unfortunately, the last young lady that left in the car. So, no, we can't tell who was first just because they're all separate. And at what, and at what time.

So, yeah, it's very, this is a very difficult case to be able to put back together for the, the law enforcement. Unfortunately, the medical examiner autopsy won't be able to help them in, in that,

in that aspect. But you also made a great point, you know, or the projectiles, if the projectiles are still in the body, that will be great evidence. But you also made a great point, you know, or the projectiles, if the projectiles are still in the body, that will be great evidence. But if not, then, you know, law enforcement has a heavy lift ahead of them. I assume, Dr. Jan Gorniak, that a rape kit would be performed on both the women, at least? Depending on how they're clothed or how they're dressed, I know in some jurisdictions that

all female homicide victims get a sexual assault kit. I'm not sure. So it just depends on jurisdiction. It depends on if law enforcement requests it. And then once again, the person who's in the water that might, you know, alter the result. But I would say yes, just depending on the circumstances. To Ethan Badowski joining us, WCJB, do we know if rape kits were conducted on the three victims, especially to the two females, and how do they know each other? I mean, there's 1,500 people in the town. They had to go to school together.

Yeah, I can't say whether rape kits were administered or not. I don't know that. But what we do know is that these two did go to school together. They both attended Lake Weir High School. Actually, Layla had recently gone to homeschooling. She had left lake weir in january we also now know that one of the victims has been identified the third victim has been identified as camille quarrell she also attended lake weir high school so these two did go to high school together but obviously we don't know about the male victim because he has not been identified yet the two female 16 They both went to the same school together. Layla Silvernell, Camille Quirrell, and the unnamed 17-year-old boy. I mean, Ethan, how many high schools are there in this small town? There can't be that many.

Yeah, so basically the two in Ocklawaha that they would send their kids to are Forest High School or Lake Weir High School. There's obviously a ton of high schools in Marion County, but those are the two main ones I believe that people send their kids to in Ocklawaha unless they want to send their kids to private schools or to, you know, other schools based on where they are in the area. But there are basically two main high schools that people go to from talking to people around there. You were just hearing our friends at WKMG. Now take a listen again. We saw the Marion County Sheriff's Office's dive team here along Malauka Loop. It's not far from where investigators say they found a 16-year-old girl dead in a car

that was partially submerged near a body of water just before 1 p.m saturday then friday just before 8 a.m investigators say they found a 17 year old boy who'd been shot on the side of the road near southeast 94th street and southeast 188th court he died on scene then thursday they found a 16 year old girl who deputies say is leila silvernail lying on the side of the road here in the Forest Lakes Park area near Southeast 183rd Avenue Road before 11 p.m. And last check, she was in the hospital with critical injuries. To Randy Kessler, joining us, high-profile lawyer out of the Atlanta jurisdiction. Kessler, could you explain what is a dying declaration?

Well, it's an exception to the hearsay rule. If someone's saying something and they're about to die, we can let it in, even though there's no way for it to be cross-examined by the other side because the person's gone. It's probably going to be truthful because things you say at that last moment, you have no reason to lie, no ulterior motive. It's an exception to the hearsay rule. It's how we teach it and learned it in law school. Remember the case of Tex McIver in your jurisdiction of Atlanta?

When his wife was taken to the hospital, at the very end she refused to see Tex McIver, her husband. Now, that's something that absolutely had to sway the jurors. That's what we're talking about. Under our Constitution, under the Sixth Amendment, you have the right to not only a lawyer, but you have a right to cross-examine witnesses, all witnesses that are brought in to testify against you or for the state. And a dying declaration is basically denying you the right to cross-examine the speaker. So let's just pretend that we arrest Randy Kessler, high-profile lawyer, for these three murders. But what if Layla Silvernell made an utterance, made a statement of some sort before she died,

and that was brought in against Kessler. He would not be able to cross-examine it. But as he has accurately pointed out yet again, it's allowed under one of the many exceptions to the hearsay rule, dying declaration. So, what about it, Randy Kessler? If Layla gave any utterance because she was alive when she was first found in that dumpster could it come in it could you know but if she was shot you know in the brain

it's gonna be hard to imagine she was able to speak because it sounds like the brain was the part that it was the first to go but yes if she made an utterance it could come in i can't imagine a conviction being based just on that unless it was specific you to go. But yes, if she made an utterance, it could come in. I can't imagine a conviction being based just on that unless it was specific. You know, this person shot me. This is why. This is where. You know, people say all sorts of things

in certain situations. They want to get things off their chest, but it would be very, very valuable information in the fact that she lingered on. A dying declaration does not have to include all the details you're discussing. I mean, it's all the better if it does. But if she just gave a name like Randy Kessler did it, Kessler did it, well, that would be enough to come in.

And that would be very probative. Right, but you would need a lot more than that, obviously, because there are a lot of other, you know. But yes, it would be helpful. And that's one thing. That's one benefit of her not, you know, the pain and the suffering is terrible. But there's a benefit to her not being found dead and hopefully salvaging some information. Yes, exactly right, Nancy. Well, you are right. You need more evidence than that. But that's pretty strong.

What more do we know? Take a listen to this. The sheriff's office said it appears these shootings are all connected since the victim's body found inside the car Saturday was owned by another victim, Layla Sivernell. Whoever's perpetrated the crime needs to be prosecuted to the fullest extent. Deputies say at this time they're not releasing the names of the other teens who were killed because their family requested a privacy law called Marcy's Law, which protects their identities. Investigators say it appears to be an isolated incident, but say they still don't have a motive for the shootings or anyone in custody. Detectives say this case is active and ongoing. If you can help in this investigation, call the Marion County Sheriff's Office right away. We're going to keep

asking questions to find out what happened. Cheryl McCollum, we've heard that so often. This is an isolated incident. Remember, we heard that after the four University of Idaho students were slaughtered, that at first law enforcement said, yeah, no need to worry because this was targeted. And then a whole hail, a crap storm hit them right in the head after that for making that statement. Nancy, when you've got three young people in the same age bracket and a short distance apart in the same basic spree of time killed in the same way. I mean, this appears to be three assassinations. It doesn't appear to be for a sexual assault. It doesn't appear to be for a theft. It seems like the only goal here was to murder. So you have to think these three are isolated. These three are together. They could have even been shot in the same car. Could have been a carjacking. Absolutely, it could have been. But to control three people at the same time through this span of time, through this many miles of driving, it would be unlikely to me for it to be one

perpetrator. Again, this screams to me, this was more than one person. I think they were young, like 15 to 18. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. To you, Ethan Badowski, joining us on WCJB-TV. I'm very curious. If these three know each other, that says to me that very possibly the killer knew them. These are not just a random series of attacks. What is Marcy's Law that we're hearing about and why? Of course, the first victim we heard about, Layla Silvernail's name was published. Then we heard about the teen boy and the teen girl. Their names remained secret because of Marcy's Law. But now the third girl that was in the car has been named

as Camille Quarle. Yeah, so Marcy's Law basically allows the families of victims to protect their identity, protect any identifying information. So still there is no identifying information except for a 17-year-old male about the second second victim but the reason we know the third victim is because the family started a gofundme um so that information has become public through them um and and they mentioned in the gofundme page if you read it it says camille was killed along with her two friends on march 30th 2023 so that is how we know the identity of the third victim. But within Florida, Marcy's Law basically protects people from the, you know, allows families to not give any identifying information out to the public.

Now, that wording to Dr. Dana Anderson, our forensic psychologist joining us today, that wording, our daughter was killed along with her two friends, suggests, well, it confirms the three victims, all three of them, not just the two females, but all three of them were close. They didn't say acquaintances. They didn't say classmates. The family said friends. And it almost makes it sound as if they were killed at the same time, killed along with her two friends.

Yes, that could be. So obviously they all knew each other. So that means they hung out together. Does that mean they went to the same school together? You know what? I always think what is the ingredient for this breeding ground for someone to have to feel like they have to eliminate another person? Like what happened in this relationship? Like what, you know, is personal if you know them?

This as the community is taking precautions to protect their families. Listen to our friends WCBJ. Some families are taking more safety precautions while deputies search for a suspect. They don't ride the four-wheeler anymore as of all this going on because that's exactly where they when they found the car is exactly where I let them go and then right next to it is a retention pond. They go and they ride their four-wheeler they check in I can see them I track them on my phone on their on my app and now you're not going anywhere alone. Period. Sheriff Billy Woods is asking for help.

Now we're looking for help. We're looking to help for the families who have lost a loved one. And there are folks out there that know. The tip line is 352-368-3542. Repeat. 352-368-3542. As fears of a serial killer run rampant through the community following the deaths of three teens, law enforcement is taking great pains to say, no, it's not a serial killer. Take a listen to Sheriff Billy Woods. Now, one of the things I want to start with is I want to stop the rumors that are on social media. One of the rumors is that there's a fourth victim. As of right now, there is not.

Nor do we have any information to indicate that we do, unless you know something that we don't. And that means you're not helping us. If you do know more, you need to call us and give us that information. Now, the second rumor I want to address is the idea that there is a serial killer out there that is far from the truth. Now, I have the facts of what we know right now, and I can give you that assurance. That tells me that somehow they've got a line on the killer. And don't expect more murders. Here's more from Sheriff Woods.

So do not speculate on social media. Because one of the things I want each of you to think of and try to remember when you start to type is that there are family members out there reading it. And some of you, you make up. And it's devastating to that family and you need to stop. But however, you can help us. You can provide us this information. Call us. Now there's things that we cannot tell you, can't tell the media, some things we can't even tell the family

members. One, because the law does not allow us to do it. Marcy's Law. And then two, the integrity of the case itself. To ensure that we can build a solid case against this individual that committed these crimes. This individual. That says to me, he believes there's one killer. If he knew differently, he would have said this individual or individuals. You know, back to you, Ethan Badowski, WCJB, what led to Sheriff Woods' reprimand regarding social media? Yeah, there were a lot of rumors flying around in Ockawaha. You have to remember, this is a very small town, very small community. Everybody kind of knows each other.

And I remember getting into the office on Monday and, you know, my assignment manager, Amber Jackson, telling me that there are rumors flying around, there's a poor victim, there's this going on, all kinds of people commenting all over Facebook, all these things that they had seen. And then Marion County Sheriff's Department, Monday morning, released a basically rumor control. That's what they called it. Facebook posts where they shut down a lot of these rumors that were flying around on Facebook. What rumors?

As he said in the in that quote, we just heard that there was a fourth victim, that there's a serial killer out there. You know, people had said they saw this or that or whatever. There was a million different Facebook comments on these posts, but they basically, you know, put out rumor control and they said, look, these are the facts. We found Layla in this dumpster by Forest Lakes Park. We found another victim up the road. And then we found the other victim, you know, in a pond, however far away. So they basically put a stop to a lot of the things that were flying around. And I'm sure there are still things flying around because again, it's a very small town, a lot of people talking to each

other playing telephone with each other. But at the end of the day, the Sheriff's Department has said, you know, that it's not a serial killer, there is no fourth victim. And that's what we have to go with, I believe, personally. And there is a working theory. Listen. Listen carefully and you hear more facts about the events leading up to the three murders. Listen to the sheriff. All of our victims are known or were known to know each other and were together leading up to the incident itself.

As far as we, all the information we have, yes, they are friends. Okay. And the other thing that I'll hit on real quickly is that the detectives also have information that it's possibly tied to what we classify as hybrid gangs. That's what I'm sorry. Hybrid gangs. What is that? A wannabe gang. I'll use a little more plain English for everybody.

A wannabe gang is what they are. Which means there may not have been any real motive other than the thrill kill, the desire to be in a gang. Randy Kessler joining me, high-profile lawyer out of Atlanta. Do you remember the Doom gang as it reared its ugly head in inner-city Atlanta? Yeah, and look, there's a nine-month trial going on now in Atlanta. There are tons of gang trials. That's sort of a thing, right?

You can't be part of a gang, shoot somebody, and that elevates you. Yeah, it elevates you within the gang. I guess it elevates you when you get behind bars, too. I remember Doom in particular because it was the first gang-related killing that I'd seen in the office, and what they did to the victim was just awful beyond anything I'd ever seen before. You know, we're hearing a lot regarding a possible motive and we're learning that the three victims were together leading up to the murders. Ethan Badowski, what can you tell me about law enforcement possibly speaking to a purported POI person of interest? Yes. So yesterday, you know, Sheriff Woods held that press conference.

And, you know, you can read more of our reporting that Lolly Solace, one of our reporters, did a great job. And she just, you know, basically reported from what Sheriff Woods stated that they do have at least one person of interest out there. They do have suspects. I'm not sure if they have been able to speak with them, if they've brought them in. But we do know that there are people of interest within this case and they seem to be honing in on at least one or two. Dr. Jan Gorniak, what could be found on the bodies that could be traced back to the killer or killers? Well, anytime we process a homicide victim, we're collecting fingernails, blue fingernail clippings,

just in case there might be some DNA underneath the fingernails. We will, obviously, if there's the projectile there, we can probably trace it back and give that evidence over to law enforcement. But mostly, and if there's anything else on the body, we're going to look to see if there's bite marks, you know, possibly. I'm not sure there'll be any in this particular case. But if there's any injuries to a person's hands or anywhere on their body, maybe their neck also, we may be able to swab that for DNA.

So it can be limited in this case unless there was really close contact. And firearm injury usually isn't that up close and personal like if it's a strangling or a blunt force trauma. Nancy, can I jump in real quick? Yeah, I was going to say, Cheryl McCollum, somebody had to push that car into the pond. So the first place to look is all around the back of that car for fingerprints.

Go ahead. They also picked Kayla up and placed her in that dumpster, so there will be touch DNA on her clothing. Well put. Well put. Guys, tip line 352-368-3542. We wait as justice unfolds.

Goodbye, friend. This is an iHeart Podcast.