Johnathan Quiles, a 38-year-old Jacksonville resident, is currently facing charges in court. Quiles is suspected of having a child with his 16-year-old niece, Iyana Sawyer, and then murdering her.
His crimes include those considered to be first-degree murder and statutory rape. On the third day of the trial, much of the focus shifted to testimony about what Quiles did the day Sawyer vanished.
Quiles’s whereabouts on the day Sawyer went missing were pieced together using surveillance footage from his place of employment, Ace Pick-A-Part.
Quiles was seen coming into the office and leaving without signing out.
In addition, he was seen going into a restricted area and then to a pile of used tires in the parking lot. Finally, he drove off in his van. Sawyer reportedly left school around the same time Quiles did, according to eyewitnesses.
Quiles’ defense team insists he is innocent despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, and has focused particularly on the lack of a body.
The defense has also pointed out that there is no concrete evidence connecting Quiles to Sawyer’s purported death.
No crime scene or substantial DNA evidence is mentioned. The defense’s handling of these arguments against the mounting evidence will be crucial to the result of the trial.
