Romes brothers' murder: 17-year-old Ohio boy is charged with killing two teens he lived with
(CBS/AP) TOLEDO, Ohio - A 17-year-old who told authorities last week where they could find the bodies of two teenage brothers, Blaine and Blake Romes, has been charged in their deaths, and prosecutors want to try him as an adult.
The aggravated murder charges announced Friday came just over a week after all three teens were named in an Amber Alert issued after the slain brothers' mother discovered a gun and blood inside a trailer home where the three boys lived with their mothers. The brothers' mother called 911 on May 9, telling authorities to "please hurry."
The brothers, 14-year-old Blaine and 17-year-old Blake, were found dead several hours later.
The accused boy's mother and his attorney have declined to comment. His name, which was released previously, is now being withheld because he is a minor.
The boy told officers that the Romes brothers were dead and pointed authorities to their bodies after he was found with an allegedly stolen car at a gas station in Columbus, about 120 miles southeast of the trailer park in Ottawa, authorities said.
The boy pleaded not guilty to a grand theft auto charge a week ago, but was not immediately charged in the deaths. The aggravated murder charges were filed Thursday in juvenile court, but a judge has been asked to send the case to adult court, said county Prosecutor Gary Lammers.
Authorities have released few details about what happened, saying they are limited because those involved are juveniles. Investigators have not said how the boys died.
Documents from the sheriff's office indicate one of the bodies was found at the trailer while the other was found at a different undisclosed location. Autopsies were completed a week ago, but the county coroner has refused to release the results.
Hundreds of classmates attended a funeral Wednesday for the brothers in Ottawa, a village of 4,500 people south of Toledo.
The younger brother, Blaine, was supposed to join his classmates on an eighth-grade class trip to Washington the morning he disappeared. He was on the basketball and track teams at his school.
Blake was a junior at Ottawa-Glandorf High School, where he was involved in track and choir.
