In a Florida community preparing for the holidays, a brutal crime has cast a shadow over an entire town — and now, prosecutors say the two boys accused in the killing will stand before a judge as adults.
According to the New York Post, authorities announced Friday that Gabriel Williams, 16, and Kimahri Blevins, 14, will be tried as adults in the death of 14-year-old Danika Troy.
The State Attorney’s Office revealed its decision the same day the teens were indicted on first-degree premeditated murder charges, according to WEAR News.
Investigators say Troy was lured to a wooded walking path in Pace, near Pensacola, on Nov. 30. What began as an online feud, authorities believe, led to a deadly ambush: the victim was allegedly shot multiple times before her body was set on fire.
Troy’s mother reported her missing early the next morning. Around 11 a.m. on Dec. 2, a passerby found her burned remains.
The teenager was identified only through the shoes she wore and her electric scooter, which had been left nearby.
Williams and Blevins were arrested within days. They were initially held in a juvenile detention center before being transferred on Friday to the Santa Rosa County Jail, where they are being held without bond.
Sheriff Bob Johnson described the case as heartbreakingly straightforward.
“This is what major crimes [unit] calls a ground ball,” Johnson said. “The evidence pointed to them immediately. They took them into custody immediately.”
“It’s bad enough that you kill a 14-year-old. You’re 14, you’re 16, you shoot her multiple times, and then you set her on fire,” the sheriff added.
As the investigation continues, the victim’s family is struggling through grief that feels impossible to name.
“I don’t know how I’m holding up, really,” Danika’s mother, Ashley Troy, told The Post. “Every other day, every new wave of pain and denial of how this could be real — my baby, killed. It’s nothing I ever imagined. My worst nightmare.”
She said she and her younger daughter are leaning on each other as they face their first Christmas without Danika.
“There’s an emptiness where we were once three and are now just two,” she said.
A motive remains unclear. Authorities say they believe the teens planned the attack after an online dispute in November. Troy’s mother said one of the boys pretended to have romantic feelings for her daughter to lure her to the wooded area.
“Gabe [Williams] pretended to have feelings for her,” she said. “That’s how she was lured.”
Troy’s mother said Danika had once been friends with the boys and described the killing as an act fueled by darkness rather than hatred for the suspects themselves.
“I don’t blame those boys. I blame evil influence. I don’t hate them, I hate what they did to my baby,” she said.
Authorities allege the weapon used in the killing was a gun stolen from Williams’ mother, though no parents have been charged.
Neighbors near the crime scene told WEAR the violence has shaken their sense of security.
“It’s always been so quiet here, and it’s getting bad. It’s terrifying, in fact,” resident Sue Petrisch said.
With adult charges filed, Williams and Blevins could face life in prison — or the death penalty — if convicted.
“I pray they get the maximum penalty,” Ashley Troy said.
