For almost 40 hours, missing Dayton, Tenn., teen Trinity Faith Quinn was a runaway whose family just wanted her back from the clutches of a family friend who vanished with the girl Monday.
By Tuesday night, the 15-year-old girl was a suspect in the slaying of a 58-year-old Nashville convenience store clerk, along with 28-year-old Daniel Aaron Clark, the man who drove her there.
On Wednesday, Clark and Quinn were charged with criminal homicide, especially aggravated robbery and attempted theft of an auto, authorities in Nashville said.
The district attorney has 90 days to decide whether to prosecute Quinn as an adult, spokeswoman Dorinda Carter told The Tennessean.
JUST IN: Daniel Clark has been arrested in Nashville and Trinity Quinn has been found and recovered without incident. pic.twitter.com/DmNTWWMHsv
— Josh DeVine (@TBIJoshDeVine) May 3, 2017
15 yr old Trinity Quinn was with Clark and is also in custody.
— Metro Nashville PD (@MNPDNashville) May 3, 2017
John Daniel Stevens, 58, was the clerk on duty at a West Nashville convenience store when Clark and Quinn walked in around 9:30 p.m. CDT Tuesday, Metro Nashville Police spokesman Don Aaron said in a video of a Tuesday news conference posted by The Tennessean.
Aaron said surveillance video showed the violent scene unfolding inside the store.
"Clark went up to the counter. He had a gun, initially, low on the counter," Aaron said. "As they conversed with Mr. Stevens ... he raised the gun higher. We think he fired a shot."
Then Clark pointed the gun at Stevens' head, Aaron said.
"Mr. Stevens attempted to get the gun away or knock the gun away from his head," Aaron said. "At that point, Mr. Clark took a step back and opened fire. Mr. Stevens was shot multiple times."
Stevens fell to the ground and Clark rounded the counter, pulled Stevens' body out and rifled his pockets before he and Quinn left.
"They then went outside. They took keys. Once outside, they went to a vehicle but they did not have the keys to that particular vehicle. Mr. Clark shot the windows out of that vehicle after he couldn't gain entry," Aaron said. "Then we saw them on video leaving the rear of those businesses."
Officials with the Metro Nashville Police Department said the pair was arrested Wednesday after a dump truck driver spotted Quinn on the side of a road and called police. When police arrived, they found Quinn and Clark on an embankment behind some trees. Police said they were taken into custody, and after giving statements, Quinn and Clark were charged with killing Stevens.
Earlier in the day, Clark had been added to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation's Top 10 Most Wanted list, and an Amber Alert had been issued for Quinn.
Twelfth Judicial District Attorney General Mike Taylor said the pair's problems were far simpler before they left Rhea County.
Taylor said Quinn's grandmother had dropped her off at Rhea Central Elementary School early Monday to catch the bus to Rhea County High School, but the teen "never got to the high school."
Dayton police worked Monday night and Tuesday to get the word out that Quinn was missing and was thought to be with Clark.
Quinn's mother on Tuesday issued a plea via WRCB for Quinn's safe return.
"We love you. We miss you. Your brother misses you, your sister misses you. Just please come home," said the 15-year-old's mother, Stephanie Reed.
On Wednesday, Clark's family issued a statement to the station: "We love our son. We want to know exactly what happened before we make a comment."
Dayton Police investigator Steven Rievley said he was working with Metro Nashville police detectives and any legal activity involving Clark and Quinn in Rhea County would probably come later.
In a press release issued late Wednesday afternoon, the Nashville police department said it appeared Clark and Quinn had known each other for a number of years and had been planning on fleeing Dayton, Tenn., together for the past several weeks.
"They arrived in Nashville late Monday night/early Tuesday morning and parked at the West Nashville Wal-Mart when, they said, the van they were traveling in ran out of gas," reads the release. "The two stayed in the van in the Wal-Mart parking lot and walked around in the area Tuesday before going to the Exxon market, which is in eyesight of the Wal-Mart store."
In a Wednesday interview with The Tennessean, the victim's sister-in-law, Elise Stevens, called his slaying senseless.
"He was the gentlest man," she said. He'd worked third-shift at the Exxon for years after retiring from the U.S. Navy. He would never hurt anyone."
The Tennessean contributed to this story.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.