Two suspects are in custody in connection to the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Odie Carbajal in Pierson last week, the Volusia Sheriff's Office has announced in the aftermath. 17-year-old Tania Morales and 15-year-old Martin Martinez are the two teens the VSO arrested.
It was announced last week that Carbajal had been fatally shot in a vehicle with two other people, one of whom was also wounded in the shooting. The third passenger fled the scene, according to Sheriff Mike Chitwood. Emergency personnel tried to perform life-saving care on the teen, who was pronounced deceased at the scene. This all went down on Wednesday evening.
The first suspect, Morales, was arrested on Thursday. Detectives reportedly discovered that Morales had reached out to Carbajal over Instagram in order to arrange the sale of a quarter-pound of marijuana. It's then said by the VSO that Carbajal met Morales, Martinez, and one other individual at the agreed meeting site on Christmas Road in Pierson.
"The people in the car were going to make a drug transaction for a quarter pound of weed," Chitwood said. The three in the seller's party were, he claimed, were "a 17-year-old female, her 15-year-old brother, and a 15-year-old friend".
Things went south when Morales and another person approached the driver's side of the vehicle, where Carbajal was, and tried to rob him according to the VSO. Both those two are said to have pointed guns, and at some point in the tense interaction they fired them. This account was supported by the recovery of two 9mm guns at the scene, along with multiple spent shell casings.
The second arrest came on Sunday, when Martinez was taken into custody. He was reportedly linked to the murder with evidence sufficient to obtain a search warrant for Martinez's phone. After executing that warrant, law enforcement arrested Martinez at his Pierson residence. There's no word yet on the status of the third individual who was reportedly with Morales and Martinez.
Chitwood used the opportunity to send a message to teenagers who may have access to firearms. "The law has changed," he said. "If you get caught with a gun, if you get caught using a gun, you're going to face adult sanctions. You will have destroyed your adolescent years, and you will destroy your adult years."
