New Search Warrants Issued In Duncan 'Thrill Kill' Murder Case

News 9 is taking a look inside the high profile murder case against three Duncan teenagers, accused of killing Australian native Christopher Lane two months ago.

Thursday, October 17th 2013, 7:39 pm

By: News 9


News 9 is taking a look inside the high profile murder case against three Duncan teenagers, accused of killing Australian native Christopher Lane two months ago.

The preliminary hearing, originally set for this week, has been pushed back while investigators continue to gather evidence in the case.

When the case against the defendants is laid out in Stephens County Courthouse next month, it will feature pieces of evidence found in nearly two dozen search warrants

Chancey Luna, James Edwards Jr, and Michael Jones are charged in the murder of Australian Native Christopher Lane. Lane died while jogging in Duncan on Aug. 16. The suspects are accused of shooting lane because they were bored. Investigators believe the suspects talked about the crime via text messages, emails and social media sites like Facebook and Twitter.

8/20/2013 Related Story: 3 Suspects Charged In Murder Of Australian Man In Duncan

 

Search warrants show investigators collectively pulled more than 5 MB of electronic data from the twitter accounts belonging to alleged shooter Chancey Luna and co- conspirator James Edwards Jr.

Investigators are reviewing pictures, friends lists, and posts like, "'With my n***** when it's time to start taken lifes'" and "'Don't make me bring them killers out.'"

In the last two months, search warrants were also issued for the suspects' cell phones, a video recorder and media storage card found in the alleged getaway car. Investigator indicated video evidence could be found on the devices, but the court records are generic and only show that a large file was recovered on the storage card.

8/19/2013 Related Story: Police: ECU Baseball Player, Australian Native Target Of Random Killing

Evidence is also believed to be on James Edwards Jr.'s cell phone. In the half hour following the shooting, Edwards allegedly showed up to court for a meeting with a juvenile affairs representative and told him "there was a shooting" and that he was "getting text messages from people asking if he done it".

During that same court appearance Edwards allegedly used a USB cord to charge his phone through a prosecutor's computer but it also backed up his photos. One search warrant shows that state computer containing a folder labeled "James Edwards Pics" has since been taken into evidence.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys cannot comment on the case due to a court issued gag order. The preliminary hearing is set for Nov. 20.

8/18/2013 Related Story: 3 Juveniles Arrested In Murder Of ECU Baseball Player, Australian National

logo

Get The Daily Update!

Be among the first to get breaking news, weather, and general news updates from News 9 delivered right to your inbox!

More Like This

October 17th, 2013

March 22nd, 2024

March 14th, 2024

February 9th, 2024

Top Headlines

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024