17-Year-Old Charged with Murder in Deaths of N.C. Schoolmate Devin Clark and Lyric Woods

Lyric Woods, Devin Clark.Photo: Orange County Sheriff’s Office; Facebook

Police have identified the 17-year-old suspect charged in the fatal shooting of two North Carolina teens.

Issiah Mehki Ross is chargedwith two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Lyric Woods, 14, and Devin Clark, 18, Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood said in anews briefingshared via its official Facebook page on Monday.

Blackwood shared that, afterthe bodies of Woods and Clark were foundin September, authorities quickly “secured” a juvenile petition, asking for permission to charge Ross. He was deemed a suspect after authorities investigated the crime scene and gathered “forensic evidence.”

Blackwood said the investigation caused him to “believe that Mr. Ross is the person responsible for the death of Devin and Lyric.”

Raleigh’s WRAL reported thatClark and Ross attendedEastern Alamance High School together for a short time. Ross was enrolled in the school from Aug. 29 to Sept. 3. It’s not clear if he and Clark knew one another.

Once back in North Carolina, the suspect was taken to a “secure juvenile detention facility” located in another county, said Blackwood.

Ross, who is 17, will be tried as an adult, Orange County assistant district attorney Jeff Nieman added during the briefing.

Ross is currently being held without bond, and two individuals in Delaware have also been charged for harboring a fugitive. Those cases will be tried in Delaware, Nieman added.

OCSO public information officer Alicia Stemper said she did not believe Ross is from North Carolina and hadn’t lived there long. He is said to have family in the area.

Asked if Ross would be the only one detained in the case, Blackwood said, “I don’t want to speculate on that right now.”

The OCSO did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

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It’s not clear who is representing Ross in the case. His attorney told WRAL, “We are still gathering evidence.”

When asked about rap music Ross possibly released after the murders, Stemper replied, “That’s not part of the investigation into the murder itself.”

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One of Ross' friends toldRolling Stone, “He’s a good artist on the rise. That’s all I know.”

Officials said at the time that theyidentified a 17-year-old suspect, but had not detained them yet. The suspect’s name was also not released at the time.

source: people.com