The woman charged in the June murder of an Alpharetta teen is out of jail on bond.
Hali Karlan, of Roswell, was released from a Fulton County jail after posting a $55,000 bond following a July 5 hearing.
Karlan, 20, is facing six felony charges, including murder, and a misdemeanor after the body of 16-year-old Elijah Smith was found in the woods in Jeffersonville. Police believe Karlan and Derian Ventura-Flores killed Smith on June 13 after an argument when they left the Extended Stay hotel in Alpharetta to go buy cigarettes.
Witnesses at the hotel last saw Smith walking with Karlan at the hotel that night around 11:30 p.m., according to a 911 call from Smith's sister. She called police on June 14 to report that Smith was missing.
Police believe Karlan and Ventura-Flores shot Smith and dumped his body in Twiggs County. Smith's body was discovered on June 16.
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Ventura-Flores, of Lawrenceville, is also facing several charges in Fulton County for Smith’s death, but has been held in a Polk County jail since June 16 for an unrelated incident. As of July 13, he had spent 28 days in jail and no bond has been set. In Polk, Ventura-Flores, 19, is being charged with aggravated assault and conspiracy to commit a felony, records show.
Court records show that Karlan is due in court next on July 28.
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