The 25-year-old suspect accused of murdering two women in Immokalee Friday, agreed to be held without bond until further notice while he finds a lawyer.
Lorenzo Ray Coleman Jr. had his second appearance, a pretrial detention hearing on Thursday, July 16.
He is accused in the murder of two women, ages 25 and 29, at a house on North Ninth Street in Immokalee just after 8:30 a.m. Friday. Deputies said a child witnessed the murders, according to the Collier County Sheriff’s Office. He was arrested in Lehigh Acres by Lee County Sheriff’s deputies later that morning after fleeing in a white Dodge Challenger, which was stolen.
Coleman, of Immokalee, is charged with two counts of second-degree murder with a firearm, child abuse and grand theft auto.
During a first-appearance hearing Tuesday, a judge ordered Coleman held without bond on the two murder charges, and assigned a $50,000 bond for the child abuse charge and $25,000 for the theft charge.
Judge John McGowan temporarily appointed a public defender for Coleman for the purposes of Thursday’s hearing, which lasted about 10 minutes.
Coleman is trying to retain a private lawyer, Kimberlee Woods, from LaBelle for his defense. However, she has not yet officially signed on to the case.
His decision to concede the motion for pretrial detention, meaning not challenging the prosecution’s proposal to hold him without bond, will give Coleman time to get his affairs in order, according to McGowan.
Coleman will remain in custody at the Collier County Jail until further notice. His next hearing, an arraignment, is scheduled for Aug. 10.
You can reach Naples Daily News reporter Alexa Ryan by emailing Alexa.Ryan@naplesnews.com. Follow her on Instagram @alexaryanreports or X @AlexaRyan_.
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This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Immokalee double murder suspect agrees to no bond during hearing Thursday
Reporting by Alexa Ryan, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Naples Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Alexa Ryan, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News | USA TODAY Network
