2 of 3 teens accused of shooting 17-year-old girl to death to appear in court

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Two of the three teenagers accused of shooting a 17-year-old girl to death Monday afternoon in northwest Charlotte will face a judge Wednesday.

Officials said 17-year-old Juan Zamora and 16-year-old Andy Garcia were charged wtih first-degree murder, attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon and conspirary to commit robbery.

A 15-year-old, who is not expected to appear in court Wednesday, was also charged with first-degree murder, attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to commit robbery.

(Andy Garcia, left, Juan Zamora, right)

The shooting happened shortly after 3 p.m. at Beatties Ford Road and LaSalle Street.

According to police, Alysha Johnson was shot several times.

Police believe it was a random crime, and that Johnson was being carjacked. She may have resisted, which could've led to the deadly shooting.

MEDIC said Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene.

(Alysha Johnson)

Nickriah Hopper came across one of the suspects several months ago and was victimized.

"A bit of fear, because now I understand this person was out, and I could have been in that same situation," Hopper said Tuesday.

Hopper was outraged Garcia was released from jail. He was on electronic monitoring when police said he and two others shot and killed Johnson.

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Police said Garcia and another suspect used a baseball bat to rob Hopper and Lajoy Lightfoot several months ago.

“Yeah, I suffered a broken arm,” Lightfoot said. “I've been having to deal with that for the past four or five months now."

Hopper and Lightfoot said they put up a fight, and they feel lucky they were not killed.

"I feel very blessed and very fortunate that I'm still here,” Lightfoot said. “It could have happened to me. It could have happened to anyone.”

[PHOTOS: 1 killed in northwest Charlotte]

Channel 9's veteran crime reporter Glenn Counts said it was a very emotional scene Monday and officers had to restrain members of the victim's family several times.

Officers said they detained the three young suspects nearby with the help of the community.

"The community stepped up in a big way and provided us very good descriptions on the suspects in this case," CMPD Maj. Dave Robinson said.

The murder occurred in front of a building which houses The Peacekeepers, a group that works to reduce violence.

"What we've been trying to do is get between the guns and the violence in the community,” said Norman Muhammad, who is with The Peacekeepers. “Being this happened on our doorstep, just shows were not doing enough."

Police said Zamora and Garcia were taken into the custody of the Mecklenburg County Sheriff's Office. The 15-year-old suspect was transported to an area juvenile detention center.

The murder is Charlotte's 56th homicide of 2019.

This is an ongoing investigation. Check back with wsoctv.com for more information.

Cox Media Group