BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A 20-year-old Cocoa man faced a judge this afternoon in connection with the deadly October 6th shooting that claimed the life of 15-year-old Ka’ryah Duncan.
According to the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office, Duncan was sitting in a vehicle outside Anchors Seafood and Chicken on Clearlake Road when she and two other teens were ambushed by a group of gunmen.
Investigators say the surviving victims returned fire before the suspects fled the scene.
Sheriff Wayne Ivey said, ”All of these people that are involved in this are young people and they’ve destroyed countless lives as part of this, not just the 15-year-old and the family and the other two that were shot, but their own families as well, because now each of them is looking at, facing the rest of their lives in prison or, you know, even the death penalty.”
The suspect, 20-year-old Jonterich Smith, has been charged with first-degree premeditated murder and is being held without bond.
Deputies are still searching for another suspect, 20-year-old Xazavier Elijah Butler.
The Sheriff urged anyone with information about Butler’s whereabouts to contact Crime Line at 1-800-423-TIPS, email wheelofugitive@bcso.us, message the Sheriff’s Office on Facebook, or call 911.
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