TYLER, Texas — Editor's Note: The above video was published March 23, 2023. Because of one of the victims is underage, CBS19 is not identifying the 17-year-old teen.
Arrest documents show that a gun exchange that became a robbery lead to the shooting deaths of two Athens teenagers at a Tyler apartment complex last week.
On Friday, Aaron Johnson, 20, was charged with capital murder and Nicholas Hudson, 18, was charged with two counts of murder in connection with the deaths of Donovan Dodd, 19, and a 17-year-old boy, both of Athens.
According to arrest affidavits, the shooting happened when a trade for Johnson and his friend's AR-15 assault rifle in exchange for Dodd and the other teen's 9mm pistol and $400 cash went bad.
The document shows Dodd and the 17-year-old were found dead with multiple gunshot wounds in a vehicle at the Royal Crest Apartments, located at 1909 Sybil Ln in Tyler.
Police officers located a Springfield XD 9mm pistol, spent 9mm shell casings inside the vehicle, a stack of money, an AR-15 assault rifle on the ground near the driver's door, and a second AR-15 assault rifle in the back seat, the affidavit said.
Soon after responding to that scene, police received a call from a resident on Park Place in Tyler saying a man, later identified as Johnson, had been shot at the apartment complex as well, police said.
He was taken to the hospital and then released to the police station for an interview. In the interview, Johnson told police he and someone he called "Brandon Horn" contacted "ASG" to trade an AR-15 to ASG's associates for a 9mm pistol and $400, the affidavit read.
Later in the investigation, ASG was identified as Hudson, who coordinated the meetup in the Royal Crest Apartments parking lot. His associates were identified as Dodd and the 17-year-old shooting victim.
Johnson pulled up next to Dodd and the 17-year-old's car in the back of the lot. Johnson got out of his vehicle with the AR-15 and into the passenger seat of the other car, according to the document.
Johnson said he passed the AR-15 to Dodd and the 17-year-old passed the money toward Johnson, but the teen would not let go of the cash, the affidavit explained.
The teen, who had his right hand on the pistol, started to turn around with the gun when Johnson reached for the pistol, the affidavit explained.
The teen fired one shot that struck Johnson's left thigh. Johnson then said he took the pistol from the teen, and fired about seven rounds into Dodd and the 17-year-old victim, according to the affidavit.
Johnson fled from the vehicle and called EMS from a nearby home.
In an interview with police, Hudson admitted to coordinating the gun exchange between Johnson, Dodd and the 17-year-old. He also said he was aware of the plans to steal the AR-15 from Johnson, the affidavit said.
Hudson denied leaving the vehicle until after the attempted gun trade and the shooting stopped.