A Georgia family is seeking answers amid their grief.
More than one week after the bodies of twins Qaadir Malik Lewis and Naazir Rahim Lewis, both 19, were found by hikers on Bell Mountain in Hiawassee, Ga., authorities have classified the case as a murder-suicide.
“Both men were found with gunshot wounds,” the Georgia Bureau of Investigation said in a March 9 statement. “The preliminary investigation reveals the deaths to be a murder suicide.”
However, a week later they noted that the formal cause of death for the twins has not been concluded.
The organization added March 16, “A GBI medical examiner has completed the autopsies, but the official ME ruling and results are pending additional forensic tests.”
Qaadir and Naazir had been scheduled to take a flight to Boston on March 7 to visit friends, but the pair never boarded their flight, according to authorities. The brothers’ bodies were found 90 miles away from their Lawrenceville, Ga., home in an area their family told NBC affiliate WXIA they had never visited with their plane tickets in their wallets.
“How did they end up out in the mountains?” their uncle Rahim Brawner told WXIA. “They don’t hike out there, they’ve never been out there. They don’t know anything about Hiawassee, Ga. They never even heard of Bell Mountain, so how did they end up right there?”
As for investigators’ murder-suicide ruling, he said, “We knew right away that wasn’t true.”
“They’re very protective of each other. They love each other,” he continued. “They’re inseparable. I couldn’t imagine them hurting each other because I’ve never seen them get into a fistfight before.”
It’s a sentiment their aunt Yasmine Brawner echoed. As she noted, the twins “had a huge support system.”
“We know them. They wouldn’t do anything like this,” she told the outlet. “To say they did this to each other? No. Something happened in those mountains, and we want answers.”
As such, the family is continuing to try to find out what happened.
“We want answers,” another aunt, Samira Brawner added, “we want to know exactly what happened to the twins.”
(E! and WXIA are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)
Read on for a breakdown of the ongoing investigation into Qaadir and Naazir’s deaths.
Who Are Qaadir Malik Lewis and Naazir Rahim Lewis?
QaadirMalik Lewis and Naazir Rahim Lewis were 19-year-old twins from Lawrenceville, Ga., who were found dead at the top of Bell Mountain in Hiawassee, Ga., March 8, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.
Their aunt Yasmine Brawner shared in a GoFundMe raising money for their funeral costs that Qaadir and Naazir had “dreams of starting their very own clothing line.”
Authorities classified their case as a murder-suicide, but their loved ones have expressed their disagreement, with Yasmine emphasizing on the crowdfunding website, “My nephews wouldn’t do this! They came from a family of love, and twins wanted so much for their future.”
What Led Up To The Day Qaadir Lewis and Naazir Lewis’ Bodies Were Found?
Qaadir and Naazir were believed to have boarded a 7 a.m. flight from Atlanta to Boston March 7 to visit friends, their family told NBC affiliate WXIA-TV. It came as a shock to learn that the brothers, who still had the airline tickets in their wallets, never made it on the flight, their loved ones added.
When and How Were Qaadir Lewis and Naazir Lewis Found?
The bodies of Qaadir and Naazir were found by hikers at the summit of Bell Mountain in Hiawassee, Ga., on March 8 at about 11 a.m., the Georgia Bureau of Investigation shared in a press release.
What Have Authorities Said About Qaadir Lewis and Naazir Lewis’ Case?
The GBI shared in a March 9 press statement that the brothers were both “found with gunshot wounds” and that the “preliminary investigation reveals the deaths to be a murder-suicide.”
A GBI medical examiner completed their autopsies, the officials announced in a March 16 update, “but the official ME ruling and results are pending additional forensic tests.”
What Has Qaadir Lewis and Naazir Lewis’ Family Said About Their Case?
Despite Georgia authorities classifying Qaadir and Naazir’s deaths as a murder-suicide, their family doesn’t believe that’s the case.
“They’re very protective of each other,” their uncle Rahim Brawner said of the brothers to WXIA March 14. “They love each other. They’re like inseparable. I couldn’t imagine them hurting each other because I’ve never seen them get into a fistfight before.”
He revealed that the twins were found dead nearly 90 miles from their home at a place their family said they had never visited.
“How did they end up out in the mountains?” Rahim added. “They don’t hike out there. They’ve never been out there. They don’t know anything about Hiawassee, Georgia. They never even heard of Bell Mountain, so how did they end up right there?”
Their family also paid tribute to Qaadir and Naazir with their sister Kairee Powell reflecting on her relationship with the twins.
“I’ll never forget all the memories and life experiences we shared growing up together,” she wrote on Facebook March 16. “They were a bright light on some of my darkest days and were some of my biggest supporters. They will forever live on in the hearts of mine and our families.”
