HILLSBOROUGH, NC — Authorities in North Carolina are still searching for a 17-year-old suspect facing charges in the double murders of Devin Clark, 18, and Lyric Woods, 14, over the weekend. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday that it had filed to charge the juvenile suspect with two counts of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of Clark and Woods. “The suspect has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder. While that obviously speaks for itself, it was not a random act,” Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Alicia Stember told Fox News Digital when asked if there was still a threat for the public. The suspect was not in custody as of Wednesday afternoon, according to the sheriff’s office, which pointed Fox News Digital to a Tuesday statement from Sheriff Charles Blackwood. MOTHER OF NORTH CAROLINA TEEN KILLED IN DOUBLE KILLING SPEAKS OUT: Suspect ‘Was VERY ANGRY’ Devin Clark and Lyric Woods were found shot to death on September 17, 2022, in Mebane, North Carolina. (Orange County Sheriff Tiffany Concepcion) “Through the hard work of my investigators, along with the assistance of personnel from several other law enforcement agencies, we have located a suspect in this case,” Blackwood said at the time. “We will now work with local, state and federal authorities to arrest and bring the suspect to justice.” The FBI did not immediately respond to an inquiry by Fox News Digital. 17-year-old in North Carolina charged with 2 murders IN murders of missing teens, SHERIFF says The Orange County District Attorney’s office told Fox News Digital that the suspect, once taken into custody, will first appear in juvenile court. Under North Carolina’s Raise the Age Act, 16- and 17-year-olds charged with crimes in the state are not immediately charged as adults. The location where the bodies of Devin Clark and Lyric Woods were found in Mebane, North Carolina. (Matt Simons for Fox News Digital) After the suspect’s first appearance in juvenile court — which is closed to the public and media — officials will decide whether to take the case to superior court and pursue adult charges, according to the DA’s office. “In any transfer of any juvenile case to adult court, we will look at all the facts and elements of the case,” Orange County District Attorney Anna Orr told Fox News Digital when asked about the possibility of the suspect in this case being charged . as an adult. If the suspect is charged as an adult, his name and other information will likely be released. NORTH CAROLINA SHERIFF OBSERVES Foul PLAY AFTER 2 MISSING TEENS FOUND SHOT DEAD ON POWER LINES The families of Clark and Woods last saw the teenagers, who were friends, on Friday. A pair of ATV riders found their bodies Saturday afternoon on private property in a rural area on Buckhorn Road in Mebane, less than five miles from the Woods family’s home. Devin Clark was a student at East Alamance High School. (Matt Simons for Fox News Digital) Clark was a student at East Alamance High School in Mebane, where he played football. Woods was a freshman at Cedar Ridge High School in Hillsborough. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP It is unclear what the pair were doing together when they disappeared on Friday or how they were shot on Saturday afternoon. Authorities are asking anyone with information to contact Orange County Investigator Keith Goodwin at 919-245-2918. Audrey Conklin is a digital reporter for FOX Business and Fox News. Email tips to [email protected] or tweet @audpants.
