Inset top from left to right: Jayden DeJesus, Trevon Quinones (Broward Main Jail). Inset bottom: Hunter Howell (GoFundMe). Background: The boat ramp where DeJesus and Quinones allegedly killed Howell in Broward County, Fla. (Google Maps).
Two men were arrested in Texas for a fatal shooting that occurred on a boat ramp in Florida, Sunshine State law enforcement says.
Jayden DeJesus, 19, and Trevon Quinones, 18, stand accused of one count each of murder in the first degree with a firearm and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, Broward Main Jail records show. The pair are charged in the death of 22-year-old Hunter Howell.
The defendants were arrested earlier this month after a traffic stop in the Lone Star State, the Broward County Sheriff”s Office announced in a press release. They have since been extradited back to Florida.
The underlying incident occurred on Jan. 31, on the West Broward Boat Ramp along North U.S. Route 27, which is located a few miles due west of Fort Lauderdale amid the Everglades.
The previous day, law enforcement responded to a report about a suspicious vehicle and found the victim, already dead, in a green Honda parked along a “grassy area” on the north side of the park, according to an arrest warrant obtained by Law&Crime.
Howell was in the front passenger seat of the car, according to the document. His clothing “appeared burned” and there was “soot throughout the interior of the vehicle.” Law enforcement believes the car was stashed at the far end of the lot amid tall grass and other vegetation in an “apparent effort to conceal the vehicle from view.”
Authorities described a grim sight inside the Honda.
“The victim exhibited evidence of thermal injury, and portions of his clothing were visibly burned,” the warrant reads. “A white hooded sweatshirt was observed placed over the victim’s face, partially concealing his head and upper body. The sweatshirt showed charred and burned areas, including burn-through along the lower portion and dark soot staining throughout the fabric. Portions of the material were partially consumed, with irregularly burned edges.”
The document goes on to graphically describe extensive fire damage sustained by Howell, particularly affecting his hands, and likely caused by an incendiary device of some kind. Despite those burns, the charging document says an autopsy determined the victim was killed by a lone gunshot wound to the left side of his head.
On Feb. 1, detectives spoke to the father of the victim who said he lived with him and made a living “selling cannabis,” according to the warrant. After that, investigators spoke with Howell’s girlfriend who said he left on the night in question to hang out with friends and sell marijuana. The last time anyone heard from Howell was sometime around 7 or 8 p.m. the night he died.
On Feb. 2, detectives spoke with a friend of the deceased who said they had been hanging out together earlier on the day of the killing — but that the victim had gone his own way around 7:30 p.m., presumably to continue selling marijuana. The friend went on to describe how Howell had recently lost his vehicle after it was struck by lightning. So, the victim often relied on rides from DeJesus and Quinones, the sheriff’s office said.
After the killing, both men deleted their Instagram accounts, which the friend “found suspicious,” according to the warrant.
The friend’s narrative then provided another key clue.
From the warrant, at length:
[The friend] also described a boat ramp in the Weston area that Jayden, Trevon, [redacted] and others regularly visited—primarily on Sundays—to listen to loud music from vehicles equipped with speakers. [The friend] stated that the location was known to the group, was accessed visually rather than by address, and was associated with late-night social activity. This description is consistent with the West Broward Boat Ramp, where [Howell] was ultimately found deceased inside a vehicle.
Later that same day, law enforcement issued search warrants for the victim’s cellphone records. The next day, authorities issued search warrants for DeJesus’s cellphone records.
Using a late January traffic stop, authorities determined the Honda belongs to DeJesus, according to the warrant.
The defendant’s location data showed him traveling toward the boat ramp between 8:45 p.m. and 10 p.m. on the night of the murder, the sheriff’s office says. Then, the records show the defendant leaving the area around 10:10 p.m., according to the warrant.
“The Verizon records document a continuous and traceable pattern of movement from [redacted] residence to the West Broward Boat Ramp-where [Howell] was ultimately located deceased inside DeJesus’s vehicle-and then back to DeJesus’s residence,” the warrant reads. “This movement occurred during the same timeframe that [redacted] own cellular devices remained active but unanswered and prior to the cessation of [redacted] cellular activity.”
On Feb. 4, investigators spoke with a woman who had been in a relationship with DeJesus for several years, according to the warrant.
The woman allegedly told detectives that her boyfriend came over early on the morning of the killing with Quinones in the Honda with him. Then, the woman went to visit a relative. Late the next day, however, the man’s car was gone, the witness told law enforcement.
“[She] did not question DeJesus about why he no longer had a car,” the warrant reads. “However, she did not confirm that when she arrived at DeJesus’s apartment at approximately 2:00 a.m., DeJesus did not have his Honda Accord. She advised that Trevon Quinones was residing at the residence with DeJesus.”
The warrant summarizes the state’s case, at length:
[Howell] was found dead inside DeJesus’s Honda Accord with a fatal gunshot wound. The vehicle exhibited fire damage and contained an incendiary device, demonstrating deliberate efforts to destroy or conceal evidence. Despite the vehicle being abandoned with [Howell’s] body inside, DeJesus never reported the vehicle stolen and instead advised his girlfriend that the vehicle was “broken.” This conduct is inconsistent with innocence and reflects knowledge of the vehicle’s location and condition. DeJesus further deleted his Instagram account immediately after the homicide, which, when viewed in context, reflects consciousness of guilt.
DeJesus and Quinones were arrested Feb. 11 in Kaufman County, Texas, following a traffic stop. They were extradited to Florida earlier this week and are being detained without bond.
The victim’s family was blindsided by the violence, according to a GoFundMe soliciting donations for funeral expenses.
“They shot him,” Howell’s mother told the Miami Herald. “They shot him and tried to burn the evidence.”
