A family has been arrested in Moore, Oklahoma, in connection with the killing and dismemberment of two young black men after a potential Craigslist deal gone wrong.
The bodies of Alize Ramon Smith and Jarron Moreland, both 21, were found in a pond on April 18 four days after they were reported missing, ABC affiliate KOCO News 5 reported.
Police have arrested two brothers, their mother and her spouse in connection with the killing. Kevin Garcia Boettler, 22, Johnny Shane Barker, 43, and Garcia-Boettler's 16-year-old brother, who is suspected to have shot the two men, all face charges for murder, while the siblings' mother Crystal Rachelle Boettler, 40, has been charged as an accessory after the crime.
Police believe Smith and Moreland met with Barker and the Garcia-Boettler brothers so that Moreland could sell them a gun–a deal believed to have been arranged over Craigslist, Moore Police Sgt. Jeremy Lewis told KFOR-TV.
The suspects told officers that Smith and Moreland had entered the back seats of their van when they heard a gun being "racked" and believed one of the two men was going to shoot.
"There was apparently going to be a sale of a gun, possibly off of Craigslist when the two victims entered the vehicle," Lewis said. "The suspects claimed they heard a gun being racked or cocked. At that point, one of those individuals fired at the two victims that entered the van and killed them both at that time."
After the shooting, police say the brothers called their mother, who told them to drive to a location where her boyfriend, Barker, is alleged to have helped dispose of Smith and Moreland's bodies. He is also alleged to have helped clean the van in an apparent bid to get rid of the evidence of bloodshed.
When police recovered Smith and Moreland's bodies, it was clear that they had not only been shot, but also dismembered. Their clothes had been removed and cinder blocks had been tied to their bodies, presumably to make them sink to the bottom of the pond.
The 16-year-old Garcia-Boettler brother, who has not been named because of his age, is facing charges for two counts of second-degree murder, unlawful removal of a dead body, desecration of a human corpse and felony firearm possession, while his older brother is facing charges as an accessory after the fact and unlawful removal of a dead body.
Barker has been charged with being an accessory after the fact, as well as desecration of a human corpse and unlawful removal of a body. Boettler, the mother of the two brothers, is also being charged with one count of accessory after the fact.
KFOR-TV said online court records showed a $5 million bond has been set for the 16-year-old, while a $3 million bond has been set for his sibling, and a $3 million bond set for Barker.
Moore police have not responded to a request for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Chantal Da Silva is Chief Correspondent at Newsweek, with a focus on immigration and human rights. She is a Canadian-British journalist whose work ... Read more
To read how Newsweek uses AI as a newsroom tool, Click here.
