TOWNS COUNTY, Ga. — A mystery is unfolding on Bell Mountain in Towns County after the bodies of twin brothers from Lawrenceville were discovered nearly 90 miles from home. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) is initially treating the case as a murder-suicide, but the victims’ family is pushing back, saying that explanation doesn’t add up.
Qaadir and Naazir Lewis, both 19, were found shot to death Saturday morning by a hiker at the summit of Bell Mountain, near the North Carolina border.
The discovery came as a shock to their family, who had believed the twins were in Boston visiting friends at the time.
“We want answers, we want to know exactly what happened to the twins,” their aunt, Samira Brawner, said.
The twins were inseparable, according to family members, and had no known history of conflict.
“They’re very protective of each other. They love each other,” their uncle Rahim Brawner said. “They’re like inseparable. I couldn’t imagine them hurting each other because I’ve never seen them get into a fistfight before.”
The family said the brothers had booked a flight to Boston for 7 a.m. last Friday but never made their flight. Just 24 hours later, they were found dead in an area the family said they had never visited before.
The family said the brothers’ plane tickets were found in their wallets on the mountain.
“How did they end up out in the mountains? They don’t hike out there, they’ve never been out there,” Brawner said. “They don’t know anything about Hiawassee, Georgia. They never even heard of Bell Mountain, so how did they end up right there?”
The GBI stated that their preliminary findings suggest a murder-suicide, but the family strongly disputes that conclusion.
“We knew right away that wasn’t true,” Brawner said. Their aunt, Yasmine Brawner, added, “They had a huge support system. We know them. They wouldn’t do anything like this. To say they did this to each other? No. Something happened in those mountains, and we want answers.”
The GBI confirmed that autopsies have been completed, but the agency is still awaiting additional forensic test results along with additional investigative work before issuing a final ruling on the cause of death.
The family has created an online campaign to help cover the funeral costs for the twins. If you would like to donate, you can do so here.