GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Three teenagers were charged Tuesday with killing a young man and dumping his body next to a home in Gwinnett County.
Police caught the suspects a week after children found the man’s body in a wooded area between two homes.
Channel 2 Action News was in the courtroom Tuesday morning when a judge told Franecha Torres, 17, and two other teens that they were charged with murder.
Gwinnett County police believe Torres, along with Khalil Miller, 18, and Nicholas Evans, 17, killed Willian Tunchez, 21. Police believe their motive was robbery.
“We don’t think the suspects and the victim knew each other, but we do believe it was a setup robbery,” Sgt. Jake Smith, with the Gwinnett County Police Department, said.
Channel 2 Action News was at the scene last week shortly after Tunchez's body was found in the woods in the 2800 block of Northcliff Drive in unincorporated Suwanee, hours after the his father reported him missing.
Tunchez’s truck was found parked along a curb a few houses down.
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Investigators said they have connected his death to three armed robberies in the Suwanee area.
Arrest warrants accuse Torres of luring Tunchez to the site where police believe Evans killed him. Police believe Torres then stole his phone and other belongings.
“One of the suspects has an address in the neighborhood where the homicide occurred. That probably led that particular suspect to be familiar with the area,” Smith said.
Tunchez was last seen the night of Oct. 7, after he dropped off his brother at their Lawrenceville home and left to visit a family member. He was reported missing around noon the next day.
His father told police at the time it was out of character for Tunchez not to communicate with family. He had never disappeared before, he said.
Police believe the teens killed Tunchez in the middle of a crime spree. Investigators said they connected the suspects while investigating three other armed robberies in Suwanee.
“We received a tip regarding the identity of one of the suspects. The investigation of that suspect in turn led to the identity of the other two,” Smith said.
Torres, who is from Norcross, faces three counts of armed robbery. Evans and Miller, both from Suwanee, are each facing two counts of armed robbery and one count of aggravated assault.
All three are facing a charge of felony murder in connection with Tunchez’s fatal shooting, which investigators think happened about 8 p.m. Oct. 7 based on his autopsy results.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution contributed to this article.
Cox Media Group
