Nearly two months after twin brothers were found dead from gunshot wounds on Bell Mountain in Towns County, newly released surveillance footage reveals their last known movements the night before their deaths.
As reported by Fox 5 Atlanta, Qaadir Malik Lewis and Naazir Rahim Lewis were captured on camera entering and exiting a gas station on Hurricane Shoals Road in Lawrenceville around 10 p.m. on March 7. Just over 13 hours later, on the morning of March 8, hikers discovered their bodies nearly 90 miles away on the remote North Georgia peak.
Authorities initially ruled the incident a murder-suicide, but the brothers’ family strongly disputes that conclusion. They believe the teens were victims of foul play.
“It is very odd to us,” Rahim Brawner, an uncle to the brothers, told Now Habersham in March. “We absolutely do not believe what they’re saying – that it was a murder-suicide with two twin brothers who are always together. It’s just unbelievable. That’s just something they would not do. (Authorities) were so quick to say it was a murder-suicide – the same day it happened – without a thorough investigation or anything like that. This needs to be investigated thoroughly.”
Family members say the brothers were supposed to fly to Boston on March 7 and had no known reason to be in North Georgia, making their presence on Bell Mountain especially puzzling.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) confirmed that autopsies were completed in mid-March but said final determinations are still pending additional forensic testing.
As of April 28, the case remains open. “The investigation is active and ongoing,” GBI spokesperson Nelly Miles stated in an email. “We’re awaiting updates from our medical examiner’s office.”
Anyone with information is urged to contact the GBI.
