A pair of teens accused in the murder of a beloved Alabama star football player will be tried as adults, authorities confirmed.
Elijah Rogers, and Barthonia Howard, both 18 and of Notasulga, Alabama, were arrested Monday for the death of 16-year-old athlete Javion Gary, according to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency.
Rogers and Howard have each been charged with murder and attempted murder in connection with the deadly shooting incident last week in Macon County, Alabama, that also left a 17-year-old victim injured.
Authorities have not disclosed a motive.
Gary played football for Loachapoka High School, said coaches. The violent slaying of the high school junior has left his team coping with the sudden loss of their "passionate" and "uplifting" teammate.
"He always going to have a smile on his face. He always going to have a happy-go-lucky energy," head football coach Branden Hall said, according to Opelika-Auburn News. "The guys, they loved him, man. He was kind of like the heartbeat. He was the heartbeat of the program as far as energy and attitude, how hard he played the game, how passionate he was about the game. Everything he did, he was very passionate about it."
"The vibe and the spirit that he brings is uplifting, so he's one of the guys that I kind of gravitate to early for that reason," defensive coordinator Tellis Stone chimed. "And then as we got to doing field work and things like that, and just being around him, you can kind of tell he was the alpha male of the group."
Anthony Bryant, who said he was like a surrogate father to Javion, said the teen's death was comparable to losing a son.
Bryant met Javion as a 9-year-old when he came to play for Bryant's pee-wee football team, the Opelika Dawg Pound.
"He taught me a lot as a coach and as a father figure... he's like one of my own," Bryant said, adding that Javion "had a heart of gold."
The investigation remains ongoing.
