Orange County authorities filed petition against 17-year-old with two counts of first-degree murder in relation to missing North Carolina high school students

9th grader Lyric Woods, 14, and senior Devin Clark, 18, were both reported missing over the weekend by their families before their bodies were found in the woods  

Their bodies were discovered on Sunday in western Orange County by two men on four-wheelers

Cops say the victims had been shot ten times 

Both families claim the teen friends were last seen in a car with a third person before they vanished 

Orange County Sheriff’s Office intend to file formal pleading that initiates a juvenile court case against the 17-year-old with two counts of first-degree murder

GoFundMe collections for both teenagers have now raised more than $46,000 for their funerals

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office announced on Tuesday that a petition had been filed against a 17-year-old boy in connection with the deaths of two teenagers who were found shot to death in western Orange County.
The suspect will be tried as a juvenile, with two counts of first-degree murder after the two friends, both high school students, vanished in Orange County, North Carolina. 
Lyric Woods, 14, and Devin Clark, 18, were found dead on a country trail with gunshot injuries after the pair disappeared in mysterious circumstances. The pair reportedly, had been shot ten times.
A petition is not the same thing as formal charges.
As of 2019, 17-year-olds who commit crimes are no longer charged in the adult criminal justice system. Instead, law enforcement officers will file a juvenile petition, that is the formal pleading that initiates a juvenile court case.
The identity of the juvenile offender has not been made public.

Woods was reported missing by her stepfather on Saturday morning after they found her empty bed at the home in Efland.
The backdoor of the property was also found unlocked, and the family of the ninth grader at Cedar Ridge High School immediately contacted police.
‘Gentle giant’ Clark, a talented football player for Eastern Alamance High School, was reported missing on Sunday after his family last saw him on Friday night.

Sheriff Charles Blackwood said: ‘Through the hard work of my investigators, along with the assistance of personnel from many other law enforcement agencies, we have identified a suspect in this case.
‘We will now work with local, state, and federal authorities to apprehend and present the suspect to the court system.
‘I want to thank the families of Devin Clark and Lyric Woods for trusting us and the investigative process during this excruciatingly painful time. I hope the apprehension’
Devin Clark, 18, a talented football player at Eastern Alamance, was also reported missing around the same time was Woods. His body was also found next to the ninth-grader, with both suffering gunshot wounds

Authorities confirmed that the two teenagers’ bodies were discovered with gunshot wounds by two men riding ATV’s on Sunday.
The teenagers are understood to have known each other, with both of their families saying that they were both last spotted in a car with an unknown man.
Authorities are investigating their deaths, after witnesses claimed to hear at least 10 shots. 
Both families are pleading with anyone with information that will help with apprehending the perpetrators.
Lyric’s grandfather, Stan Dean, has now offered a $10,000 reward for anyone who has information regarding the murders. 

Lyric’s grandfather, Stan Dean, has now offered a $10,000 reward for anyone who has information regarding the murders.
He crafted a cross surrounded by flowers and put it where her body was found, with lights because his granddaughter was ‘afraid of the dark’.
Dean said that he had seen his granddaughter in the hours before her death and had taken her for ice cream: ‘I’m living a nightmare. It just doesn’t make sense. The minutes are too long,’ adding, ‘We’re just taking it breath by breath. She trusted everyone.’
Her stepfather Shane Cannada said that she had a shower at around 11pm on Friday night, and he thinks she left by an unlocked door shortly after.

A missing person report stated that Lyric left all of her things in her room apart from her iPad, so he did not think she had run away. 
Brady Woods, Lyric’s father, helped in the search after the Sheriff’s Office contacted him.
Authorities managed to track her scent through a trail using a K-9 dog and her pillowcase, close to where four wheelers drove through.
She was then seen by a neighbor in an SUV at around 3am on Saturday, in the same area, with deputies believing that she was given a ride by someone.
GoFundMe collections for both teenagers have now raised more than $46,000 for their funerals. 

A Mebane Police Department report was filed on Saturday for Clark, who had lived with his father.
Paying tribute to the star athlete, his mother Tiffancy Concepion described him as an ‘athletic person, a good person with a good heart.’
Hundreds of people attended a balloon release in memory of Clark, with his brother saying ‘we won’t stop until we find justice for who killed my brother.’
His family were furious that law enforcement did not issue an Amber Alert when he was first reported missing.
Concepion also claims that she had to identify her son by his clothes, and was not allowed to see his body.
She thinks the sheriff’s office should have been more aggressive and sent out an Amber Alert when the friends first vanished.

But Orange County Sheriff’s Office said that Amber Alerts are not issued for those who are 18 years old.
Sheriff Blackwood said in a statement: ‘The process is important and critical to lead us to the person or persons responsible for this horrific crime.
‘I’m asking for your patience as we, along with other investigative agencies, do the work necessary to seek justice for the victims and their families.’
Alamance County Sheriff’s Office and the Mebane Police Department are handling Clark’s investigation.