Two North Carolina Teens Found Dead, 17-Year-Old Suspect Charged

The bodies of two North Carolina high school students were found in the woods on a hiking trail and a 17-year-old suspect has been charged.

The sheriff’s office said that men riding four-wheelers found the bodies of Lyric Woods, 14, and Devin Clark, 18, in western Orange County on Monday afternoon. 

The suspect, who has not been identified, hasn’t been apprehended yet. Authorities are still searching.

On Tuesday, Orange County Sheriff Charles Blackwood announced that a 17-year-old has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder, a Class A felony, for the deaths of the two teens.

The suspect will not be charged as an adult due to state law that went into effect on Dec. 1, 2019, and says “16- and 17-year-old individuals who commit crimes in North Carolina are no longer charged automatically in the adult criminal justice system.”

Instead, the case will be transferred from a district court to a superior court.

Blackwood went on to thank the victims’ families “for trusting us and the investigative process during this excruciatingly painful time. I hope the apprehension of this subject will bring them some comfort as they mourn their loved ones.”

Lyric was a ninth grader at Cedar Ridge High School in Hillsborough and Devin was a senior at Eastern Alamance High School in Mebane, which is west of Durham.

Sources say they were not dating each other but were described as acquaintances.

As Lyric’s parents left flowers and a cross where the teens were found, Devin’s mother Tiffany Concepcion talked to reporters.

“He never hurt anybody, so for him to get done like this is — I have to have answers,” Concepcion said. “I want to get justice…”

A GoFundMe page seeking donations for Devin’s funeral described the teen as a student-athlete who “loved his family and friends.”

The investigation is ongoing and those with any information are encouraged to call Investigator Keith Goodwin at (919) 245-2918.