Pregnant Teen Disappears After Uncle Drives Her to School
46m 31s
The disappearance of 16-year-old Iana Sawyer, a high-achieving student and pregnant teen, sparked a complex and tragic investigation in Jacksonville, Florida. Initially presumed a runaway, her case shifted when a secret diary revealed a relationship with her uncle, Jonathan Quiles. DNA found on her underwear tied him directly to her, and he confessed—via a phone call to his brother and jailhouse informants—to picking her up, strangling her, shooting her, and dumping her body in a dumpster. Despite these confessions, no physical evidence like a body or blood was ever found, leaving the prosecution’s case largely circumstantial. A grand jury ultimately indicted Quiles on first-degree murder and sexual battery, citing the confessions and emotional testimony from family members, including Iana’s aunt and brother. During trial, jurors were swayed by Quiles’ detailed confession, resulting in a guilty verdict. However, due to the absence of physical evidence, the defense successfully argued reasonable doubt on the charge of premeditated murder. The jury ultimately sentenced Quiles to life in prison without parole, rejecting the death penalty. The case underscores the devastating impact of familial betrayal and the difficulty of proving murder without physical evidence. While justice was served, Iana and her unborn daughter, Hazel Michelle, remain lost, and the case serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerability of young lives and the dangers of unchecked trust within families.
on prime crime. Miss Sawyer she just disappeared in thin air it was mass chaos. When a Florida high school honor student full of promise goes missing I'm not a monster I had nothing to do with her disappearance. A trail of love and betrayal threatens to tear a tight knit family apart. I think my husband is capable of any of this. No, I don't. You know, but we have a missing piece of the puzzle. Hey there everybody I'm Jesse Weber and welcome to Prime Crime. This is where we break down the most compelling and memorable true crime cases from across the country. When a 16-year-old girl named Diana Sawyer suddenly vanishes her family and police chased down every possible lead. This is a very twisted story that proves quite difficult for authorities to crack. December 19th 2018 started out a normal day. IS was a 16-year-old high school student a sophomore straight-A student at Terry Parker High School here in Jacksonville Florida. She also went to school with her sister SS who was a year younger in her ninth grade year. Because I on a Sawyer and her sister are minors. Investigators sometimes refer to them by their initials, IS, and SS, to protect their identities. When SS calls her mother frantically stating that IS did not get on the bus, Kimberly was at work. So she called two of her sisters one of the sisters called 9-1-1 while the other one headed to Terry Parker High School. Her family went crazy. They called 9-1-1. They called everyone. It was mass chaos because she just disappeared in thin air. So IS she was the first born. She was extremely close to her mom. She was extremely loyal. She loved being with her family. She wanted to be either a doctor or a lawyer. She was into her scholastics being the straight-A student. However, sadly at the age of 16 she was carrying a big secret and that secret was she was pregnant. Iana is five months pregnant. Though she only recently told her mom the family supports her and they've even named her unborn baby Hazel Michelle. All they want is to find Iana safe and sound. IS did not attend her last two periods of school. Video surveillance showed that she did in fact leave Terry Parker High School at approximately 11 a.m. and we don't know who picked her up because I was outside of camera footage at the time. She has two bags. One is full of course regular school items such as textbooks notebooks and then another bag has a voluminous mount of Victoria's Secret items a body pillow. The family is left questioning where is IS. The consensus between police is that she has left school voluntarily. There was no obvious signs of any force or anything like that. Our theory of the case is she either ran away and didn't want to be found or she ran away because her mom wanted to know who the father of the child was. She didn't want to tell and that led to friction between the two. The police they were just trying to do what they could define her. They did some basic search around the area. They set up the tip line. The family was doing quite a bit. They were looking for anything. After two days of searching with no sign of Iana police changed her status from a runaway to a missing person. Then her mom makes a disturbing discovery. Her mom was searching through you know her room through a laptop through her boxes in her closet. Anything she good to determine where she may be. She finds this word document on Iana's laptop that kind of seemed strange. How do you get to it? Tell me how you get to it. I went there in the recycling bin right here. She also got other notes over here on the side of the issue for her password. She got some of the notes locked. She got other stuff as she wrote a hair on about him too. The fact that Iana went to such great lengths to keep the documents a secret is as concerning as what she'd written. It was a couple pages long and it was a pouring out her heart of this person Jose. Her love for this person. The betrayal of this person. Iana's mom has never heard her talk about Jose. Could it be a code name for someone? Could she have run away with this person. The diary entries are dated February and March 2018 almost a year before Iana disappeared. Around that time Iana was in a relationship her mom did an approve of with an adult neighbor when Iana was just 15. There was a next door neighbor who lives across the street from Iana. He had had a sexual relationship with Iana and his name was Kamar Humphrey. I mean the person that was accused of sexually assaulting her you know nine months earlier is very much someone who I would be looking into very deeply when she goes missing. Authorities have legitimate cause for concern about Humphrey. In March 2018 at Iana's mom's insistence, they'd obtained a DNA swab from him for a rape kit. He admitted to having sex with Iana at least once and the DNA confirmed it. Under Florida law, he was listed as a sexual offender because he was over the age of 18 and she was under the age of 16. The time period that the rape kit was done that that we can confirm there was a sexual relationship is outside of the time period that she would have conceived but we have always asked did that relationship continue on and we know it went on for months just based on the conversations that she had with friends. He's a viable suspect for the father of her child. Police asked Humphrey where he was the day Iana went missing when he shows proof he was out of town investigators have to rule them out but if he's not Jose who is that's when a new name comes into the mix Jonathan Quiles she confronts Iana sister and Iana sisters the one who says oh that's Jose is Uncle John so Iana was John's niece by marriage he was Uncle John to Iana and to the other siblings as well they were very close his wife and him both took care of the kids on a regular basis they would spend time at their house John really charismatic guy he's very likable he was a mechanic he was a handyman he had a good family life was working doing well married had a kid another one on the way at the time. Iana's mom knows the two are very close but if Uncle John aka Jonathan Quiles is the Jose and Iana's diary did things go too far her mom is determined to get to the bottom of whatever is going on she calls police and they head over to his house he arrived while they were there he was calm cool and collective I'm here to help he did not know anything he didn't have any involvement even his wife you know was defending him and that he would never do anything to harm I S police tell the couple they have a warrant to search the house they owe me and John say hey search our house you know do what you need to do look through because you know there's she's not here she we have
nothing to do with it. - You got all the rooms? - Yeah. - Okay, so that's your orders. And yeah, let's go back. - Moving to that car? - That's right. - For sure. - Even one of the officers found it kind of funny 'cause Jonathan's sitting there, he's like, hey, come on in, you know, whatever you guys need. You want something to eat, want something to drink, you know, and he's inviting him in like he's one of the family. - But Quillez and his wife do admit that Iana's mom voiced her concerns about Quillez's contact with her daughter since she found the document on her laptop. - Once that all happened, we got blocked completely wrong. - Okay, having any communication. - But then the girl said, well, we can't speak with you now because we blocked. Mom said the block is so we got to wait until this pass is over. So I mean, the same, but it's not like, it's not uncommon. - Yeah, this has happened before, and then they come and tell you, you know, we got weekends over here at the house. - It seems like the relationship was a little more complicated than anyone initially thought. Then the couple makes another statement that seems to catch officers by surprise. - So while talking about, do you know any items that are missing of IS's? Well, the wife had stated when she left, she took a lot of her victorious secret undergarments. - Jonathan Quillez is even more specific. - Oh yeah, her 38 pair, indicating that she had taken 38 pairs of Victoria's secret undergarments with her. How someone in a family relationship with know that is obviously very odd. - As cooperative as Quillez has been, officers sense something is off. - She said that she know who the father was, but she didn't know? - Yeah, she knows who the father was for childhood. - But then you can't really take anything that she's saying serious because now that she's been gone, I question literally everything. - Police there wanted to talk to John about, have you had a sexual relationship with Ayanna? And so it was just, they were investigating him at least trying to find out. - When we return, police decide to bring Jonathan Quillez in for more questioning. - There makes some like some out allegations that we got to do a thorough investigation, okay? - Okay. - So we're going to have to take you to get interviewed, like detectives, okay? Okay, just to tell him your side of that's it, all right? - All right, I still want to take you to school here. - Let's play. (dramatic music) - When Quillez was brought in for questioning, he acted like you would expect. He denied everything, said he didn't know anything. And he lamented the fact that his niece was missing. - December 27th, 2018, about a week after 16 year old Ayanna Sawyer or IS disappeared. It's especially concerning because she's pregnant. Police have brought in her uncle, Jonathan Quillez, for an interview. They press him about the diary, his niece wrote that indicates the two had sexual relations. He denies any inappropriate contact and has even provided his DNA to police. - You guys took my DNA with the house. I don't have nothing to hide. You are looking at the wrong person. I have nothing to do with that girl disappearing whatsoever. whatsoever. - They don't arrest him that day. They detain him, they talk to him, but then they release him. - However, Quillez has raised enough suspicions that a few days later, police turned the investigation over to homicide detective Abbott, who immediately processes the DNA Quillez provided. - It was submitted to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement here and a rush was put onto it because what we had learned was that a sexual assault kit involving IS had been submitted back in March of 2018. And there was unknown DNA. - The results show DNA from neighbor Kamar Humphrey, which was expected since he and Iana had had a relationship, but the unknown DNA was additional. Could it be her uncle, Johns? - Well, on January 7th, 2019, a shock came. Jonathan Quillez DNA was on IS's panties, complete utter shock. It only heightened that Jonathan Quillez was definitely a person of interest. Then a bombshell hit. A phone call comes in to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. That individual identified himself as Joseph Quillez. Jonathan Quillez was brother. And oh boy, did he have a story to tell. Jonathan Quillez had called his brother. He stated it was either December 19th, 2018, or December 20th, 2018 that his brother was frantic stating that this girl might be pregnant. It might be mine and I have to get rid of the body. Joseph Quillez then stated his brother hung up the phone. However, some time later, he called back Kamar, not upset, not nervous, said he had taken care of it. - When Joseph asks his brother to explain, Quillez reportedly gets surprisingly specific. - Jonathan Quillez tells his brother that he lured her to his work in an area where new video surveillance, new other workers, it's loud, and he went to strangle her, but he couldn't stop like it. So he shot her, he then put her body in a dumpster, and then it's done. He now can move on and his life won't be ruined. - His brother was like, I don't believe my brother did this, but it made me feel very uneasy that if I didn't call and report it and something had happened, that it would haunt him. - Armed with this shocking new information, Detective Abbott and a colleague from Special Assault, bring Quillez back in for another interview. - Have a nice day. - Have a better day. - I know, right? - Yeah. - There's been a lot happens, maybe to talk about it, okay? - At this time, Detective Billy Abbott has spoken to Joseph Quillez, and now he is looking at this closer to a homicide investigation. - The girls would come over to your house and you'd do like trips to the beach. - Yeah, we always went to above the pool, we had the pool we had at the house. - They would stay the night. - Yeah, they spent the whole summer. - So you're doing all these things with the girls? - No, with all of them. - Right, with the kids, yeah. - But then they're accusing you of messing with the girls. - Correct. And this is, they came out with that, they started, they started like real heavy with it when, went with, you know, that boy across the street and doing all that, that's when it started like really thick. - Jonathan Quillez was trying to do anything and everything to show how it was not him, that it could be this other individual, or you know, she might have had another boyfriend in her life. - So now, a, a, is missing. She ran away or whatnot. Now here, I am sitting in a hot seat because it's mentioning me as that I am, I was, you know, I'm Mr. Holtzing, you know, so. - Do you know who she ran away with? - I don't, I don't. I've been expecting (bleep) for me, text me, anything. Snapchat, me, smoke signal. - Quillez painted himself as the victim himself. He's being unfairly tarnished by this belief he had in a proper relationship with his niece. - So if I were to tell you that I found some underwear that had your DNA in it, how would you explain it? - I would say that that is not, that there's no way in shaping any form. Yeah, there's no way. - So with the case across the street, there was a kid done. - Correct. - And she was wearing specific clothes to include underwear. - Yeah, she told me that that was one of the biggest activities that took on the way from her. - Okay, so that's what he's talking about. - That's what I was referring to. - That wasn't my DNA, that I didn't-- - 100%. - No way. - Let's see. - I'm not saying you're a monster. I don't think you're a monster at all. Okay, I think maybe they came on to you and things went a little too far. It happens all the time. - What exactly are they accusing me of? What exactly are they saying I did? Okay, well, now they're making suggestions that I'm having the sexual relationship for that I had something to do with her going missing and I absolutely did not. - Look at her face. - Look at her face. - They need closure. - I'm not a monster. I had nothing to do with her disappearance. I had nothing to do with her disappearance at all. - So the whole family's off. (beep) Is a liar. Your brother who loves you is just crazy. Why everyone's just circling Jonathan. - The last I spoke with my brother, he was all bent out of shape. I'm like, hold on, bro. You got this all twisted. I didn't do nothing. I have no idea what the hell happened with this young lady. Any of that. - So how do you have all those details? - I don't know how he had all those details. I'm sorry, I don't know how he had any details. - And he said he didn't believe you at first. He thought you were kidding, but it was so detailed. - No.
Oh, sorry. Nope. He really is just kind of like, you know what? If nothing I can do at this point, you've already made up your minds. You haven't looked anywhere else. I'm not the person, but you're convinced that I am. So. Jonathan, is there anything else you'd like to say? Nothing else I'd like to say. Okay. Then at this point, I'm going to place you under arrest for sexual battery. It's the first degree felony. Just stand up and turn on and face the wall, place your hands behind your back. Now, Jonathan Quiles is the number one suspect in the disappearance of I.S. and now the murder of I.S. and her unborn child. Police seem to believe Jonathan Quiles is involved, but they still don't know exactly what happened to I.S. Coming up, a new development. So, after the interview, Detective Abbott decided that he was going to do some more investigation. And that was through a wire. Hey, everybody. We're going to get you right back to the Quiles case in just a minute. 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When police interviewed Quillaz, he denied any wrongdoing, but Detective Abbott has gathered some powerful evidence against him, including DNA and a confession Quillaz apparently made to his own brother. Now, Abbott decides to see what else he can gather this time from inside the jail. Detective Abbott, through his partners and his homicide team, they were able to get into contact with some other inmates. One of the inmates then was wired up. And through the instructions that Detective Abbott and his homicide team had given this inmate was, you know, see what Jonathan Quillaz will tell you. Just two days later, the detective's plan seems to pay off. You did it good if I do it. You didn't get rid of the body at all. Why didn't you finish it? Because my brother, why did you kill Quillaz? If he had been next to another jail, what would you still do if you had to pay it? He laid home. Yeah. Just a single day, she came off and she was pregnant. There's the possibility that it was mine. When Jonathan starts talking, he doesn't know how to stop. And he just keeps going. His biggest flaw is, he's a chatterbox. He's a chatterbox. Oh, you shot at the job. You left the old man. I left the job. He didn't grow with us. Jumped that tree and anything. So I left you. The camera system. It's like everything is hurt. Not getting as focused. And that's the thing. The cameras do work. The challenge for a jailhouse snitch is that you could have some doubts. Well, he's just bragging in prison because he wants to have some street cred there. But his words are his words. When you compare that to his own brothers, comments, and misorders, younger sisters, words that Jose was Jonathan. Now the evidence is really starting to pile up. After Detective Abbott reviews this audio recording, the determination was, I'm going to get to his pickle part. Better make sure that we get that video surveillance. Ace Pickapart, you pull it. Is the auto salvage yard where Jonathan Quiles works. Video surveillance from December 19th in the day Iana disappeared could answer a lot of questions. And confirm or deny Quiles's statements. Surveillance videos show that Mr. Quiles left his work around the time when the niece went missing from school. So he could have left from work to go pick up Miss Sawyer. But there's no clear cut evidence of that because he had an alternate explanation. He was leaving for work purposes. It was his lunch break. And there is no specific video that shows Mr. Quiles with Miss Sawyer around that time. Jonathan said that he was asked to go up to Fastenall, up near the airport to pick up some parts. If he went and picked up IS, how could he be all the way up near the airport, which is over 30 minutes away. He can't be over it. Terry Parker high school picking her up. However, authorities alleged that Quiles drove to an area of the yard that had no cameras and was off limits to most employees where he purportedly shot Iana. Investigators pieced together what happened next from the wiretap recording. Police end up finding his signature on the sign-in sheet at the range and the gun in his closet. He went to the gun range and shot the gun. The only thing I could think of about that statement is maybe he thought some forensic evidence could show that the gun had been recently shot. If that was Quiles' plan, it seems like it worked. There's no blood evidence, there's no DNA, there's nothing on your gun. And it's alleged that he shot her at close range like in the heart even. The physical evidence didn't line up with what we were expecting to see. Investigators check every vehicle in the yard and find no trace of Iana. So what police had was a theory that he shot Miss Sawyer and then dumped her body in a dumpster that was quickly removed. But there was a lack of physical evidence here. Based on what Quiles has said, Detective Abbott follows up on the dumpster. Detective Abbott learns on December 20, 2018 all American garbage picks up the container. It went to Otis Road landfill. So Detective Abbott then makes contact with the Otis Road landfill. The Sheriff's Office spent over $1.5 million over three weeks to go through and excavate this landfill. It was almost 80 feet deep, the tons and tons of trash that was moved even by their own account was monumental in nature. And they found nothing over a three week period of time. They couldn't find anything that directly tied Mr. Quiles to Miss Sawyer's disappearance. They found some articles of clothing that they thought were Miss Sawyer's. But the sizes were a little different. It was some Victoria's secret clothing and it could have been her clothing, especially as she was carrying a baby. But it's not 100% clear law enforcement that they've got the goods. With no physical evidence, the question is whether the evidence investigators do have is enough to indict Jonathan Quiles in the murder of his niece and her unborn child. You have Miss Sawyer's younger sister saying that Mr. Quiles was Jose. You also have Mr. Quiles' own brother saying that Quiles confessed to him. And you also have wiretaps now. On July 18th, 2019, about six months after Ion a Sawyer disappeared, investigators send Jonathan Quiles' case to a grand jury. And thinking about, well, what kind of charges are we going to do? Well, ultimately, it was decided that we were going to do first-degree murder. And the reasons why we were going to do those particular charges. and also in the state of New York.
of Florida, we can do that for an unborn child, so we knew there was going to be two counts for that. The list of evidence the detectives present pays off. You're met with a grand jury today, on your case, as well as several others, and you are being indicted on first degree murder. The third count is going to be sexual battery, okay? We need to advise you of that, okay? All right, but would like to talk to you if you're willing to speak with us. I have an attorney that's representing me and she doesn't want me to talk to her being present. Considering the charges that he was facing, he had good spirits. He was pretty confident in how he spoke and very clear, concise. We talked about a lot of the alternative explanations or alternative options, alternative suspects. After the grand jury indictment, Jonathan Quillis' case doesn't go to trial for another four years, yet with no significant additional evidence turning up, does the state have enough to convict? We didn't have I.S. and her unborn child, and in a normal case, we know we're someone's murder. There's blood, there's fingerprints, there's a bullet, there's a spent shell casing, and it's readily identifiable. This is where the person was killed. There was going to potentially be some doubt. Hey, everybody. We're going to get you right back to the Jonathan Quillis case in just a second, but look, I know that we cover some very difficult stories here on Prime Crime. The world's scary. I don't have another way of saying it. It just really is, and it is hard to be prepared for what happens. Having said that, there is one thing you can do. Be prepared if you get hurt. That brings me to Morgan and Morgan, the largest injury law firm in America and our proud sponsor. Look, if you should get injured, it is so vital that you understand your legal rights and whether you're entitled to be compensated because that injury could be worth millions of dollars. 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Jonathan Quillis's trial begins on September 14, 2023 in Jacksonville, Florida's Duval County Courthouse. He pleads not guilty to all three counts against him in the murder and sexual battery of his pregnant niece, Iana Soyer, whose body has never been found and her unborn child. And the death penalty is also on the table. The girl might be pregnant, I can't lose my family if she has the baby, I have to get red of the body. She was 16. Did you shoot her? Shoot her in the head? Part. Once they heard everything, that puzzle was built, that picture was painted, that they would know beyond every reason we'll doubt that the defendant, Jonathan Quillis, killed his family member because he could not let the world know that he fathered an underage juvenile child. The defense responds, telling the jury, not so fast. They have to prove that Mr. Quillis is the one that committed this crime. There will be no direct evidence to say that he did. You will not hear it. Investigating and looking through the evidence that stated gathered, the glaring issue again and again was the lack of physical evidence that they had. There will be no DNA to say he's the father. They will not be able to prove that Jonathan Quillis is, in fact, the father of the unborn child. They don't have a body. Therefore, we believe they cannot meet their burden of premeditated murder. And therefore, we believe there will be reasonable doubt. The biggest challenge for prosecutors is that we're living in a time when people expect to see DNA direct evidence via video, and if you don't have a body, you don't have a murder weapon, and your case is largely circumstantial, it's tough to convince juries that you should send this person to jail for life or even the death penalty. The state of Florida is banking on a strong slate of witnesses, along with purported admissions of guilt made by Jonathan Quillis himself to his brother and jailhouse informants. Naomi Mobley, Iana's aunt and Jonathan Quillis is now ex-wife at whose home Iana spent so much time testifies. She says she was initially defensive when her sister said Jonathan was behaving inappropriately with her niece, but when her sister showed her snapchats between the two, she changed her tune. "What if anything that you do there after?" I told him at that time that he needed to stop speaking with my nieces and he needs to give my family space. I said that it looks really bad and he needs to distance himself. "Did you learn there after weather or not, you stopped speaking in or again?" I learned after that he did in fact continue speaking with them. "So what are we looking at in state 64?" These are the messages from Snapchat. The snapchats from Jonathan Quillis in the months leading up to Iana's disappearance were sometimes sexually explicit and even seemingly threatening. "9/4/2018/9/27, I'm very aggravated right now, I'm going to hit you later. 9/7/2018/12/21, yeah so I need you to be like 100% with me at all times. I'm just so in love with you, I'll kill you and cry." There was a change in his behavior after she went missing. Prior to that he was fitted and nervous, he was restless, after she went missing then he slept like a baby. Quillis' brother Joseph also gives emotional testimony about his conversations with Jonathan as evidenced by their phone records. They talked four times between December 18th and 20th 2018, the time period of Iana's disappearance. Joseph Catel, his brother, wasn't acting like himself. "His demeanor was a little off, it was kind of like he was nervous, a little panicky about something." "Have you heard your brother sound panicky to you on previous occasions?" "No, it was more concerned about what he's going to do with the young lady in question. She might be pregnant and he's like what is he going to do, he doesn't want to ruin his family and mess up what he has already going on." In their last conversation, Jonathan Quillis seemingly finally came clean about what exactly he did on December 19th 2018. He'd picked up Iana from school, telling her they would run away and be together. "He had a sitting in a vehicle waiting, he tried to strangle her and work out, he couldn't stomach it. And so then he later went and shot her in a chest and then he proceeded to discard the body by transporting it into a dumpster and destroying the vehicle." "Mr. Quillis, were you surprised by what he told you?" "Absolutely." On December 20th, Joseph wrote his brother a heartfelt text which the prosecutor reads in court. "I can't talk to you right now, I have to stay firm on my decision. What you told me isn't some joke or something you like about, so yes I told the police because they needed to know. I'm sorry I have to do the right thing for that girl and her family, not the right thing for you and your selfishness. I hate to lose you, but I'd rather that the girl's family have some peace. If you're innocent and you don't need to worry and they won't find her body, but if you're.
not they're going to find her. And in that case, I already lost my brother. Prosecutors argue Jonathan Quillaz had also told his story to jailhouse informants, including an inmate who, ironically, Quillaz met in a Bible study group. Tell this jury what he said to you. Total, he put his gun at him and shot him. What if anything, did he tell you with what he did with her once he shot her? Once he shot it, throw her body in the dumpster. You shot her, how'd you do? You'll buy me action, I'm just blunt. Yeah, I know. I'm just-- I knew you only want to talk about it. There's all that I've been hearing about. See, I don't cover so that the laptop will be buried at the life, three feet of [bleep] garbage. When the inmate had testified and we played that wire, we no longer had to say, this is what Jonathan Quillaz said. Believe the state of Florida, it was listen to him himself. You could watch the jurors' reaction of Jonathan on that wire and what he said and how he said it. You could literally watch the jurors' change the entire demeanor of how they felt about the case. Eight out of the 12 jurors, almost in unison, turn their heads, looked right at us, and you could just read the look on their faces like you're done. Believe the jurors' reaction of the guilty of first degree heard or asked charging immediately. Heard it helped him. Believe the jurors' reaction of the guilty of first degree murder, asked charge immediately. Heard it helped him read. Believe the jurors' reaction of the guilty of engaging in an act that constitutes sexual robbery. If he hadn't started talking, if he hadn't done that, there was more than enough reasonable doubt if his own words hadn't walked them through it for the state. After almost five years of living and breathing, IS's case, getting to know IS, seeing IS's picture every day in my office, the best words ever were heard, guilty. As the case reaches the penalty phase, the question the jury will deliberate next is whether Jonathan Quiles should be sentenced to life in prison or death. Jonathan Quiles is now a two-time convicted murderer. Each of you know the horrendous facts that occur in this case. Each of you did justice when you convicted the defendant beyond a reasonable doubt, a premeditated murder of IS, and the premeditated murder of IS's unborn child. It will ask you all to render a vote of death. State of Florida did hope that they would come back and recommend death. That's what we saw it to begin with, given the totality of the evidence in this case. The defense had hoped for a different outcome. We're asking you to save his life. Does he deserve it? You probably don't think so. But is there something there worth saving? Is there something there that would make you all come back and say life without the possibility of parole is appropriate? We were able to put on witnesses, his family, psychologists that evaluated him to humanize him, really, at the end of the day, to make it so that you could understand that this is a life worth saving. The jury is decisive once again. We the jury find Jonathan Quiles should be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. It was disappointing. However, we respect the process of our system. And ultimately, we were just beyond ecstatic that they had found guilty verdicts. When they came back for life, I just-- that was the biggest sigh of relief. I really felt like, at that point, that was the best thing that we could do for him as his attorneys was to save his life. That was a huge win for us. Ultimately, our judge did three consecutive life sentences. So state of Florida, on behalf of IS, her unborn child, and the family felt that justice had been served, that truth had been sought, and it had been seen and shown. Wearing a t-shirt, bearing the name of Ayanna's unborn daughter, Hazel, her mom reflects on her loss. Ayanna was called alive and wanted to do so many things. She wanted to be a pediatrician at that about being a lawyer to my mom. She was going to be a lawyer because she could talk already out of almost anything. She was everything to ask her in a daughter. She was so close, she was my first love. It was a case that was beyond different than anything I had experienced as a prosecutor. You get to know IS through her death. You get to know her unborn child, you get to know her family. She is a part of me. I would never hear her say, I love you. I would never receive a love. Basically, I'm from her while I'm at work. I didn't think that I was going to 16 years that I was able to stand for her. And so really, again, I love you forever. Yes, the jury found the right person accountable. However, IS is forever gone. Not just forever gone. She's forever 16. Every murder is a tragedy. But there's something especially heinous and cruel about the taking of a young life. And that is underscored by the fact that Iana and her unborn daughter were murdered by a trusted member of their own family, denying them both promising futures. That's all we have for you here on this episode of Prime Crime. Everybody, thank you so much for joining us. I'm Jesse Weber. And until next time, stay safe.
Podcast Summary
Key Points:
A 16-year-old high school student, Iana Sawyer, vanished in December 2018 after being pregnant and hiding her secret from her family.
Investigators found a detailed diary on her laptop revealing a romantic relationship with a man named Jose, later linked to her uncle Jonathan Quiles.
DNA evidence confirmed Jonathan Quiles’ presence on Iana’s underwear, linking him directly to the case and raising serious suspicion.
Jonathan Quiles confessed to his brother that he picked up Iana, strangled her, shot her, and disposed of her body in a dumpster, with a detailed account of the events.
Despite strong circumstantial evidence and confessions, no physical evidence—such as a body, blood, or DNA—was found, creating a major legal hurdle.
A grand jury indicted Quiles on first-degree murder and sexual battery, citing his admissions and the family's distress, but the prosecution faced challenges due to lack of direct evidence.
During trial, jurors were deeply influenced by Quiles’ jailhouse confessions and disturbing messages, leading to a guilty verdict on all counts.
The jury ultimately sentenced Quiles to life in prison without parole, rejecting the death penalty despite the heinous nature of the crime.
Summary:
The disappearance of 16-year-old Iana Sawyer, a high-achieving student and pregnant teen, sparked a complex and tragic investigation in Jacksonville, Florida. Initially presumed a runaway, her case shifted when a secret diary revealed a relationship with her uncle, Jonathan Quiles. DNA found on her underwear tied him directly to her, and he confessed—via a phone call to his brother and jailhouse informants—to picking her up, strangling her, shooting her, and dumping her body in a dumpster.
Despite these confessions, no physical evidence like a body or blood was ever found, leaving the prosecution’s case largely circumstantial. A grand jury ultimately indicted Quiles on first-degree murder and sexual battery, citing the confessions and emotional testimony from family members, including Iana’s aunt and brother. During trial, jurors were swayed by Quiles’ detailed confession, resulting in a guilty verdict.
However, due to the absence of physical evidence, the defense successfully argued reasonable doubt on the charge of premeditated murder. The jury ultimately sentenced Quiles to life in prison without parole, rejecting the death penalty. The case underscores the devastating impact of familial betrayal and the difficulty of proving murder without physical evidence.
While justice was served, Iana and her unborn daughter, Hazel Michelle, remain lost, and the case serves as a stark reminder of the vulnerability of young lives and the dangers of unchecked trust within families.
FAQs
Iana Sawyer, a straight-A high school student, disappeared on December 19, 2018, after leaving school. Her family was in shock because she had no known contact, and she was pregnant, which created a deep emotional and familial crisis.
Iana was secretly pregnant and had not told her family about the pregnancy until very recently. This secret caused tension, especially with her mother, and contributed to the family's breakdown and fear of what might happen to her.
Neighbor Kamar Humphrey was initially a suspect due to a confirmed DNA match from a 2018 sexual relationship, which made him a possible father of Iana’s child. This led investigators to closely examine his connection to her disappearance.
Jonathan Quiles, Iana’s uncle, was identified through a diary entry where she mentioned someone named 'Jose,' which matched his identity. Later, DNA from his clothing was found on Iana’s underwear, and he confessed to his brother about killing her.
Quiles claimed he picked her up from school, tried to strangle her, couldn’t bear it, then shot her in the chest and threw her body into a dumpster. This was supported by wiretap recordings and his brother’s testimony, though no physical evidence was found.
No physical evidence such as blood, DNA, or a body was found. The absence of a body and forensic traces made the case largely circumstantial, leading to legal challenges about whether a murder conviction was justified.
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