BALTIMORE COUNTY, Md. (WBFF) — A west Baltimore teen has been arrested in connection with the deadly double shooting of Giovanna “Gigi” Myrie, 15, and Steve Allen, 9, who were found dead inside their Gwynn Oak home earlier this month.
Baltimore County Police Chief Robert McCullough confirmed the suspect, identified as 16-year-old Keith Maurice Jones Jr., was known to both siblings, during a news conference Wednesday at the Randallstown Community Center.
Authorities noted Jones had a personal relationship with Gigi Myrie.
Watch police announce the arrest at the video below:
The siblings’ mother arrived home around 7:20 p.m. on July 7 and found both her children dead.
Officers were then dispatched to the home located in the 6100 block of Talles Road in Gwynn Oak.
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Dispatch audio indicated the mother’s nine-year-old son was found shot in a bedroom, and her 15-year-old daughter was found shot in the hallway.
Medics arrived at the location and pronounced the children dead at the scene.
When questioned about the circumstances leading up to the shooting, Chief McCullough said, “we do know he had been at the home before, maybe several days prior to July 4th”.
Chief McCullough confirmed that Jones had been in the area prior to the crime and he was in the area after the crime.
The discovery was so deeply disturbing that Chief McCullough was visibly impacted while providing a preliminary update on what was then declared a double homicide investigation.
“You know, you remember every child, and it’s not only children, but even young people. It’s just even more tragic,” Chief McCullough said.
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On July 21, a funeral was held for both children at the St. Casimir Church in Canton. During the services, hundreds of people packed inside the church for eulogies and a mass.
Family and friends embraced each other as pallbearers loaded the caskets into a hearse, transporting Gigi and Steve to their final resting place.
“Two lives were lost. These were lives that will never be realized,” Chief McCullough said.
Jones, who had just recently turned 16, was charged as an adult and faces two counts of murder, Chief McCullough said, adding that the teen is being held without bond at the Baltimore County Detention Center.
As of July 22, there is no confirmed motive.
