On the afternoon of March 19th, 2018, residents in Lake Wales, Florida were going about their usual day-to-day business. Adults were just getting off work, kids were returning home from school, and others were finishing up their errands. But, around 3 PM, that all changed when waves of police and paramedics made their way to a neighborhood on the south side of town, surrounding a small field near Caloosa Blvd and Lake Blvd. As public interest grew and residents watched on, they learned that just beyond that field, in a small but dense area of trees, lay the dead body of 15-year-old Giovanni Diaz. As for the suspect, 16-year-old Dillen Murray, he was already in custody, claiming that he had beaten the boy to death in self-defense. It just so happened that the community themselves had far more information than investigators initially realized, helping to piece together the puzzle of how a hang out between friends turned deadly.

***We originally covered this case in an abbreviated “Felony Friday” mini-episode back in 2020. This is a follow-up full length rewrite now that the perpetrator has been sentenced and all investigative reports have been made publicly available.***

Written by Trevor Pason, edited and engineered by Scott Ecklein, and executive produced by Michael Ojibway. View full episode source list at https://www.invisiblechoir.com/listen/secretproject 

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