ST. TAMMANY PARISH – Police say the murder of a man and woman from Pearl River was the result of "a carjacking gone wrong."
According to Sheriff Randy Smith, Brittney "Beezy" Savell, one of the four people police arrested in the case, had set up a meeting with Raegan Day and Dustin Hartline to see Day's 2011 Chevy Camaro and possibly buy it.
Smith said Savell, along with Jason Landry, Derrion Lemoine and Steven "Stevie" Oliveieri, were waiting for Day and Hartline when they arrived at the predetermined location. All four suspects were allegedly armed and wearing masks.
What happened during the attempted carjacking is unclear, but police say Day was shot twice in the head and Hartline was shot once in the head before their bodies and the car were dumped into the water near the Pearl River Boat Launch.
Police recovered Hartline's body from the trunk and Day's from inside the passenger area of the car.
"This is tough. These are tough. From day one, we jumped on it right away because the story of them going to Metairie and then Baton Rouge to a doctor's appointment," Smith said. "When you lose a phone signal – two phones – when you lose that without any trace, in today's world, today's technology, that's why we jumped on it right away."
According to police, Hartline and Day were murdered on Feb. 15, the day before they were reported missing. Their bodies were not recovered until March 5.