Three teenage males have been arrested in relation to the murder of a missing teenage boy from Killeen.
Seventeen-year-olds Victor Villarreal Jr. of Fort Hood and Paul Andrew Cantu of Waco have both been charged with the murder of 16-year-old James Johnson III.
Cantu confirmed to Killeen police Thursday that he and Villarreal picked up Johnson at his home and took him to a house in Killeen on Nov 11.
Cantu told police that at the house, he and Villarreal physically beat Johnson. Cantu then strangled him with a rope.
A third teenager, 16, has been charged with assault and is being held at the Bell County Juvenile Detention Center. Both Villarreal and Cantu are being held at the Bell County Jail with bonds set at $1 million.
James' mother first reported him missing on Nov. 11 at 10:30 p.m. She told police she had last seen him at 7:30 that morning, while he was asleep in his bed. When she returned at 8:30 that night, he was gone.
After failed attempts to reach him on his cell phone, his parents told authorities they asked his friends for help, but they said they also had not heard from him.
According to the affidavit, Cantu agreed to take Killeen officials to the location of the body.
Police found Johnson at about 2 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, just north of Temple off FM 1237.
