A former Georgia police officer has been charged with felony murder and kidnapping in the deaths of 16-year-old Susana Morales after authorities revealed Wednesday that a gun he reported missing was found near her skeletal remains.
The officer, Miles Bryant, 22, was previously charged with concealing a death and false report of a crime in connection with the disappearance of the teen, whose skeletal remains were found Feb. 6, the Gwinnett County Police Department said. He was a police officer in the Atlanta suburb of Doraville and was fired in light of the charges.
J.D., Gwinnett police chief. On Wednesday, McClure announced that Bryant's charges were upgraded to felony murder and kidnapping.
The authorities honed in on Bryant in the case after finding a critical piece of evidence — a handgun — in close proximity to Susana's body was found during a grid search of a wooded area near Highway 316 between Drowning Creek and the Barrow County line.
It was determined that the personal gun reported missing by Bryant on July 27 made him a person of interest in the case.
McClure shared a breakdown of her disappearance.
Susana was last seen July 26 and was reported missing by her family the following morning.
Susana left her home in Norcross at 6 p.m. and walked a short distance to the Sterling Glen Apartments where she met with a friend for about four hours. We know that Susana had an interaction with an individual who McClure said to be Bryant, but was never seen or heard from again between 10 and 10: 30 p.m. The police believe that Susana died in that time frame from when she had the interaction with Bryant up to 2 a.m. the following day, July 27.
McClure said that it is not known if Susana and Bryant knew each other or were familiar with each other, but he did live in the Sterling Glen Apartments complex that she had visited that day and served as a courtesy officer there.
He said it is not definitively known how Susana died, but he said there is no indication that she was shot. He said it's possible that she was raped.
We don't know how she died, but we're still investigating. He said she died at the hands of Miles Bryant.
McClure said that police are still investigating and that they are not sure what the motive is. He said it is possible that Bryant was watching Susana for a period of time before her death.
McClure said that there had been previous reports about Bryant harming another person in the same way, and police have no evidence that he is linked to Bryant harming another person in a similar fashion.
He was accused of trying to enter a neighbor's house through a window in 2018. Bryant countered the allegation, and police were called to the scene. The homeowner did not want to prosecute and the case was resolved.
In December 2022, Bryant visited the home of an acquaintance, and he may have tried to enter the residence, McClure said. He said that warrants are forthcoming and that the case is under investigation.
The two cases were not in the Sterling Glen Apartments complex, McClure said.
McClure said Susana's death was an unimaginable tragedy. McClure said that this type of crime at the hands of a law enforcement officer evokes anger, even within the ranks of the agency. Police officers should always be pillars of trust.