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Murder & Mediumship is true crime meets intuition hosted by Kathryn Ostrowski. Murder & Mediumship is a podcast that pours into cases primarily from marginalized communities that often do not receive the national press coverage that they deserve. Fun fact - many who listen to true crime regularly struggle with higher levels of anxiety and depression. Therefore, Murder & Mediumship also focuses on taking better care of mental health, hosting special guests from all walks of spiritual practitioners as well as mental health advocates.
Welcome BACK to Murder & Mediumship - it’s been a long and bumpy road, but it feels good to be back behind the mic again. We’re going to skip any lengthy intro’s today and get straight to it, because this case has bothered me since I originally heard it.
In the beginning of Murder & Mediumship, I was connecting to victims and trying to further understand what had happened to them. After finding the tiktok profile of Maura Murry’s sister (Maura Murry is a very well known true crime case that I absolutely recommend looking into), I gained a perspective that made me feel as if what I was doing was intrusive and could potentially bring more pain and suffering to the families of the missing or murdered victims I was connecting to. It felt unethical and I shifted how I was covering cases and who I was bringing more attention to. This brought me to MMIW, to crimes against other marginalized communities like foster children, POC, etc. I covered a few historical cases like the murder of Emmett Till and musician Sam Cooke. I learned that this country (I’m in the USA) like other developed countries tends to highlight on the national news, cases of people who look like me - white girls.
It occurred to me that if my friend’s children went missing - she is very much Hispanic and spent a portion of her life being raised in a Hispanic country - her children who look Hispanic - would likely not be searched for with the same public attention and outcry that my blond hair, blue eyed babies would be searched for. So when I made the decision to start this show back up, I knew I had to do so in a way that continued to highlight communities that are not born with privilege in that way. We are living in a time where racists feel even more emboldened and empowered than they have in the more recent past. I believe that the deaths of Qaadir and Naazir Lewis - twins from Lawrenceville, Georgia are a product of that emboldened racism, and like their families and the NAACP, and many others, I am waiting with baited breath for a private investigation to be done. Silence is compliance, so let’s get into what we currently know about the untimely passing of these beautiful twin brothers.
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On March 8, 2025, the 19-year-old twins were found by hikers on top of Bell Mountain in Hiawassee, Georgia nearly 90 miles from their home in Lawrenceville. Around 11:05 in the morning, the hikers who found them called 911. The Towns County Sheriff requested the involvement of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. GBI became involved the very next day.
The preliminary investigation revealed that both Qaadir and Naazir had both suffered from gun shot wounds and though it was never stated which brother was suspected of playing which role, authorities declared their deaths a murder/suicide pending autopsies. The family absolutely could not have disagreed more and were very vocal about their disagreement here. This made absolutely no sense to them whatsoever, as the boys were supposed to be in Boston visiting friends at the time, so how was it that they ended up 90 miles away at the top of the mountain.
One that is super bothersome to me with the information available about this case, is that so many details changed from the initial investigation to what is currently being claimed. Initially, it was said that the boys were both supposed to be in Boston visiting friends. They had allegedly both purchased plane tickets and the tickets were found in their wallets on top of the mountain. They were supposed to go on March 7th. However, it was then revealed by GBI that only Naazir had purchased a ticket and had gone to the airport on March 7th, then never flew out and returned home. Did he miss his flight? Did he check in? Did he have any intention of leaving? Is there footage of him at the airport? We know how much security there is at airports and there is no way he could have even entered a parking lot without some sort of security footage - absolutely not.
On March 18th, volunteer firefighter, Scott Kerlin, was arrested and charged with misdemeanor obstruction for taking photos of the crime scene and publicly sharing them. According to news reporter, Cody Alcorn, the images were even viewed by local high school students. Kerlin was one of the first to arrive at the scene as a first responder and I have to wonder, there is no way he was there alone, right? So while he took photos of this, no one thought to say, “Hey man, not cool - maybe don’t be a disrespectful loser?” YouTuber, Parke Jones has a breakdown on her page of what she was able to see on Scott Kerlin’s facebook page prior to it being taken down and she described it as having strange and concerning images shared that showed his true character. One such image was a meme of a woman leaving her drink unattended and referencing Bill Cosby - alluding to date rape and making humor out of it.
Interestingly enough, Kerlin had photos of him on his page with Bell Mountain in the background. The media took hours to share his arrest photo and if you see it, you’ll understand maybe why. You can see hateful horror in that person’s eyes. Was he involved in their deaths?
On May 21st, the GBI ruled what was initially declared a muder/suicide, a double suicide. One gun was used between the two of them, so that would mean that they would have had to go one after the other. Thinking about this logically doesn’t make sense, but really just doesn’t feel right either. According to early sources, it was cited that they were found with “gun shot wounds,” so was it multiple per brother or two between the two of them? The wording is a little confusing here. According to GBI, “The comprehensive investigation indicates the injuries causing their deaths were self-inflicted,” and no further information was given or would be given.
So how is this being justified as a double suicide? GBI says both twins had gun shot residue on their hands, indicating that they each had fired a weapon. Records showed that Naazir purchased ammunition for the gun that was used and that ammunition was delivered to their home on March 5th - two days before he was supposed to be boarding a flight to visit what has now been determined to be his girlfriend in Boston. The search history on both of their phones revealed that they were googling suicide rates for 2024 and other “related” but not defined searches. Further evidence showed surveillance video of them that corresponded to where their cell phones were pinging while en route to Bell Mountain. The only video that has been publicly mentioned is surveillance of them at a Shell gas station in Lawrenceville twelve hours before they were found at the top of the mountain. However, it has also been mentioned that GBI was unable to ping their location thirty minutes before they would have reached the mountain.
So let’s make it even more interesting. An unnamed source saw the boys at 8:45 pm on Friday, March 7th. The gates to the mountain close at 8pm during the winter and 11pm during the summer. In March, the gates would have closed at 8pm, so how were they seen outside of that area at 8:45 pm if they would have already been behind the gates because the gates are locked at 8pm. They would have had no way of getting up the mountain if they were seen outside of it after the time of it already being locked. The trails require a key to access and that’s not something they had access to. Towns County law enforcement is responsible for locking the gates not just locking them, but doing a sweep of the mountain before doing so. Is it possible they neglected to do the sweep and just locked up anyway and the boys were already up there? Maybe, but that doesn’t make sense either, as their car would have been seen there and it would have been clear someone was still there and that the gates couldn’t be locked yet. Or did Qaadir and Naazir get to the mountain as early as 8 a.m and climb to the top and take their own lives prior to the hikers finding them at 11:05 a.m? Several sources have stated that a suspicious black vehicle headed down from the mountain while someone who lives on the mountain apparently has video footage of the boys being followed up. The locals are adamant that law enforcement in the area is corrupt and not to play into “conspiracy theories,” but the Towns County coroner is allegedly connected to the fire department as well.
This entire case screams cover-up. The Final Call Newspaper interviewed Tiger Harris, the boys’ step uncle. He alleges that they were found in “Klan territory” in a historical sundown town. Their stepmom, Kaarini Lewis, told Final Call that she had last seen the boys at home on the evening of the 7th and said goodnight to them. Their father, Tyrese was present for the interview, but is recovering from a stroke, and his answers were inaudible. The boys were actively helping their father in his recovery process. Tiger said that Naazir missed his flight on Friday and rebooked it for Saturday morning, and left his bags packed and everything by the front door ready to go. Their uncle insists he didn’t believe that they even owned a gun, and look, is it possible that they did without family knowing? Of course. These kids were on a good path though, both pursing college degrees and planning to open a clothing line down the road together. They had a cruise planned for their upcoming 20th birthdays on April 5th, and they were active in helping to care for their younger siblings and cousins, frequently taking them to the park, the pool, and the trampoline park.
If you don’t know what a sundown town is, these are predominantly white communities that intentionally exclude POC through forced expulsion, violent threats, or economic coercion. Most of these towns emerged in the 1880s and the 1960s. This does not mean that they no longer exist, but that they exist differently. These are areas where it’s not safe to exist as a person of color after dark. In these areas, public lynchings and acts of violence against POC were very common, especially during the more prominant reign of the KKK. Hiawassee, GA, has historically had a reputation for violence against POC. Black residents in this area do not account for even one percent of the county’s residence. According to a 2020 census, out of a population of 12,493, only 158 residents were Black. Acts of “night riding” or “whitecapping” or organized and illegal acts of violence were and continue to be carried out against Black families and communities under the cover of night.
Their Aunt Antoinette Lewis told Final Call that the boys were excited about purchasing a new car soon and moving into their own apartment. They were making plans to travel to Kenya and she was helping them to get their passports sorted out. A Go Fund Me has been created to hire private investigators as well as legal aid to help fight for justice for these boys.
The most recent update was released on June 6, 2025 and according to Fox 5 Atlanta, “The family of Qaadir and Naazir Lewis alongside the NAACP and state leaders, is demanding an independent investigation and release of all evidence, disputing the GBI’s conclusion that the twin brothers’ deaths were suicides.” The NAACP referred to their deaths as a lynching and call for a full and transparent investigation with the help of Attorney Gerald Griggs. State representative, Gabe Okoye supports the family’s concerns stating that the investigation does in fact look like a cover-up and goes further to say that if something is going to be covered up, they should at least make it believable.
I am so glad that their State Representative is standing by the family in this and I hope that they do get the justice that they deserve. Prior to diving into researching this case, I grabbed a photo of the boys and sat with it to see what I picked up on with my intuition. I have an oracle deck with an interesting assortment of cards targeted more toward criminal actions. The cards that came out were surveillance, meetings, death, abuse/neglect, and mountains. When the “mountains” card came out, I had chills. I saw three people outside of the two boys. It felt to me that they had a run-in with 2 people and that a 3rd person was called. Part of this run-in feels like an intentional meeting that went awry. I think that everyone involved was older than these kids by around 20 years or more and at least one of them was wearing something that feels college related with the color purple on it. I do feel that one of the twins had to convince the other to go with him for something and that it was something they were avoiding telling their parents about - some sort of business transaction that wasn't ever meant to materialize. They weren’t where they said they would be, but it feels to me that one twin was helping the other out of some sort of trouble - and nothing really serious - but helping them straighten out a mess that was created by others but that he could get looped into. I do not believe that the mountains where they were found were part of the original plan of where they were meant to be. I believe that someone else drove their car up there and the second vehicle had accomplices in it. It feels as if these kids were ambushed and that there was a road on the other side of the mountain where the other vehicle kind of kept watch or stood by.
100% yes this feels like a cover-up. I do believe that Scott Kerlin while he may not have been directly involved, he knows who does and would not tell for anything. He’ll keep his mouth shut. He took those photos as a brag and a show of force to display what they were capable of and I believe his arrogance is what busted him down here. I do not believe he’ll really get into any trouble over the charges though. The photos have been described as the boys being displayed in a way that looked as if they were arranged like a cross or that they were being displayed in a way that screamed sacrifice. In the NAACP press conference held on June 6th, it was disclosed that their bodies were found laying face up, with their feet almost touching and laying away from each other, both with their arms outstretched in a cross or T shape. The GSWs to their heads were identical in placement.
I’m curious to know what sort of intuitive hits or feelings you guys have as the listeners today. Let me know via email if you’d like.
If you’d like to donate to the family’s fight for justice, you can find the GoFundMe in my links on social media as well as in the show notes. Share their voice and help this community to not be stifled by centuries of racism and inequality. These kids deserve justice.
Sources:
https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/twins-dead-bell-mountain-family-press-conference-investigation.amp
https://www.gofundme.com/f/qaadir-and-naazir-funeral-service
https://people.com/twin-brothers-boston-found-dead-georgia-mountains-11697870
https://people.com/twin-brothers-found-dead-mountain-died-by-suicide-sister-details-last-conversation-11740995
https://gbi.georgia.gov/press-releases/2025-05-21/gbi-investigates-deaths-bell-mountain-towns-county
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/rcna208761
https://new.finalcall.com/2025/04/14/final-call-exclusive-interview-with-family-members-of-qaadir-and-naazir-lewis/
https://youtu.be/EJGOWyd9D4s
https://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/articles/history-archaeology/sundown-towns/