ORLANDO, Fla. – Gun thefts in neighborhoods near the Cady Way Trail have been linked to the slayings of two Winter Park High School students, according to Orange County deputies.
The bodies of Nicholas Presha, 16, and Jeremy Stewart, 18, were found burning by two bicyclists around 6:40 a.m. on April 15 just off Cady Way Trail near Full Sail University.
Recommended Videos
Jesse Brandon Davis, 30, and Hector Manuel Rodriguez, 31, have been charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping in the teens' deaths. Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings said on Friday that Presha and Stewart met with the men with the intention of selling them two stolen handguns. Deputies said Davis and Rodriguez planned to rob the teens, but instead, the teens were shot to death and then their bodies lit on fire.
Deputies said the teens broke into two cars in neighborhoods near Cady Way Trail and stole two guns in the months leading up to their deaths. Deputies also believe at least one of those guns was used to kill the teens on the bank of a canal on the Cady Way Trail.
According to burglary reports obtained by Local 6, a .32-caliber Manurhin semiautomatic gun was stolen out of a vehicle on Amber Oak Drive on Feb. 12, along with a black paddle holster, a boot knife and eight .32-caliber bullets.
Another gun was stolen a week before the slayings, on April 7, according to a burglary report. Deputies said a car was broken into on Shoals Drive and a Glock 27 .40-caliber, a holster and a LED flashlight were stolen.
Watch Local 6 for more on this story.