The man accused of fatally shooting two Caldwell County teenagers June 9 later told his brothers he believed they were “aliens” disguised as firefighters that he had to kill.
Investigators found more than 50 9-millimeter shell casings near the bodies of 18-year-old Klayton Manning and his 16-year-old cousin Landin Robinson along Tenney Road in a rural area of the county.
Manning was a volunteer with the Southeast Caldwell County Volunteer Fire Department and the teens were riding in a fire department ATV along Tenney Road when they were shot multiple times – both in the vehicle and as they were attempting to flee.
Their bodies were discovered around 6 p.m. – Manning’e some 82 feet from the vehicle and Robinson’s approximately 28 feet away.
About an hour later, Bryan Haynes, 36, told his two brothers in Austin that he had shot at “aliens” on an ATV with fire department decals. A Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office investigator met with the brothers on June 10 and Haynes was arrested June 11 and charged with capital murder.
The brothers told Caldwell deputy Jeff Ferry that they knew the suspect had been in possession of a 9-millimeter handgun.
A prayer vigil for the cousins was held in Luling on June 15. The next day, community members lined roadways as an escort brought their bodies home.
