LEXINGTON, S.C. — In court Wednesday, Detective Pablo Carvajal was the first witness to take the stand to testify in the trial of Nicolle Sanchez-Peralta who is accused of helping kidnap and kill 15-year-old Sanaa Amenhotep.
Detective Carvajal was called onto the case when Richland County Sheriff's Department explained they were looking at Sanchez-Peralta as a witness or a possible victim in the murder case. Carvajal says he was able to interview the defendant and used terrain association to help the defendant remember where Sanaa's body was buried.
Body camera footage shown in court showed the defendant pointing investigators in the right direction and recorded her admitting to being with Treveon Nelson (her boyfriend) and their friend Jaylen Wilson (nicknamed Smoove) the night of the murder in the location where they buried Sanaa's body. Sanchez-Peralta explained to investigators that she did in fact steal a car but because her boyfriend Treveon told her to, once she and Sanaa were in a car with Treveon Nelson and Jaylen Wilson she claims guns were drawn on them, Sanchez-Peralta says once they arrived in Leesville Treveon Nelson walked around her and Sanaa with a gun "deciding who to kill", she was asked to step forward and Sanaa was allegedly then shot by both Nelson and Wilson when she tries to run Sanchez-Peralta says Sanaa is shot again.
She claimed once they left, the boys said they would urinate on their hands as a method of taking away gunpowder residue.
In her interviews with investigators Sanchez-Peralta also claims that after the murder she was held hostage by Nelson in his home for about a week. However, social media evidence presented shows the couple at a hotel together the next day.
The second witness of the day was named Preston Simpson, who works with SLED's Fusion team, which helps ping cellphones.
Simpson says at 9:45 p.m. on the night of April 5, Sanaa's phone was still on and pinging the cell tower near her home. 10:01 p.m., Sanaa's phone was still active. By 10:06 p.m. the phone is still pinging.
10:06 p.m.: Sanaa Amenhotep and Nicolle Sanchez-Peralta's phones are in close proximity to one another. The phones are still in Richland County and close to Ft. Jackson Blvd.
10:28 p.m.: There is now only activity pinging from Nicolle's phone. The tower at South Congaree pinged.
10:53 p.m.: The phone pings a tower off of 178, Nicolle's phone pings close to where Sanaa's body was found.
11:15 p.m.: The phone pings closer to the scene.
12:55 a.m.: Nicolle's phone is near Truex Road in Lexington County near David Gaskins' house. (This man allegedly provided shovels to the group)
1:35 a.m. The phone left the Truex area and returned to the crime scene.
2:25 a.m.: The phone is by I-20 again no longer close to the crime scene.
2:37 a.m.: Nicolle's phone is near 2424 Leaphart Road, Jaylen Wilson's house.
2:57 a.m.: Nicolle's phone is near Treveon Nelson's house.
10:51 a.m., April 6: The phone has left Treveon's house.
Investigator Kevin Baum was next to take the stand. Baum has served on the Special Victim's Unit in Lexington County for 3 years.
Baum was following in another vehicle the day when Nicolle led investigators around the body of Sanaa Amenhotep but not to the body. Going into interviews with Nicolle Sanchez-Peralta, Baum says he is aware that Sanaa was missing and that Nicolle Sanchez-Peralta had stolen a car and was being interviewed about Sanaa.
Investigator Baum says his department completed search warrants for 8 different phones between Treveon Nelson, Jaylen Wilson, and Nicolle Sanchez-Peralta.
This team found messages from Nelson to other people asking about buying 9mm bullets.
David Gaskins, also known as Gotto is Witness 4 and was a friend of Treveon Nelson. Text messages between the two revealed Treveon Nelson contacted him looking for a shovel, however, Gaskins never replied.
Investigator Brandon Miller was the last to take the stand. He was involved in searching the home of Jaylen Wilson and relayed what he saw.