An 18-year-old Florida man has been arrested for the shooting deaths of two teens found dead on Christmas Day last year at a remote property known as “the Compound” in Palm Bay.
Jamarcus Simpson was already behind bars in St. Johns County on unrelated charges when he was arrested for the murders of Jeremiah Brown, 14, and Travon Anthony, 16, Palm Bay Police Chief Mario Augello said.
CrimeOnline reported that the two teens were found shot to death at about 8:30 p.m. after a 911 call reported a body on the side of the road. The bodies were found in a nearly 3,000-acre expanse of land that was once slated for a housing development that never happened because the developers went bankrupt.
The Compound is now a popular site for off-road vehicles and is minimally developed, other than a few roads. The City of Palm Bay says that it is not a recreation area open to the public, but that doesn’t stop ATV riders, gun enthusiasts, and model airplane pilots from visiting the property frequently.
Augello said that detectives worked tireless to crack the case in which two young boys were “brutally executed and left on an open field on Christmas night.” He also said that there were other people involved in the murders.
“We know who you are, and rest assured, we will not stop until you are behind bars,” he said. “You may have forgotten, but we haven’t.”
Simpson has been charged with two counts of murder and is being held without bond.
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[Featured image: Jamarcus Simpson/St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office]
