Teens charged with murder after remains of missing Waco man found near Baylor campus

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - Police announced James Keylan Willis, 18, and Brandon Xavier Stephens, 19, are charged with murder and tampering with evidence in the murder of Stanley Wilcox, 59, a missing Waco man.

A third teenager, 17-year-old Heavyn Hamilton, was charged with failure to report a felony.

Human remains were found in a ravine in the 1100 block of 9th Street near the Baylor University campus shortly before 9 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 6.

The suspects allegedly told police the remains are those of Wilcox, reported missing on Dec. 29, 2022, and told police where the remains could be found, a police spokeswoman said.

Police said detectives obtained a warrant to search Wilcox’s vehicle in the 800 block of Garrett Avenue, where “indication was made that a large amount of blood was cleaned up from the trunk area.”

Under interrogation, police said, Willis and Stephens admitted they were there for Wilcox’s shooting and disposal of his body.

Police further said Hamilton admitted to knowing about the murder. The girl, however, had no involvement in the clean-up or disposal of the body, police said.

“We see that as a tragedy, but we do also appreciate that they let us know there was no connection to Baylor,” said Baylor University Spokesperson, Lori Fogleman, who revealed the university did not alert students on campus about the incident.

Janice, a freshman at Baylor, said the decision not to alert students left them unaware and confused about what happened.

“I didn’t even know it was happening this morning. I don’t really have anything on that. I mean, it’s so close to campus,” said Janice.

Fogleman said even though classes aren’t starting until mid-January, safety is still the top focus for the campus.

“Safety is always a top priority at Baylor. Our department of public safety, including our police department, are focused on that every hour of every single day.”

Fogleman advices students that if they see something, always say something.

“If anyone ever feels unsafe, or they see something that doesn’t feel right, they can immediately call Baylor police,” said Fogleman.

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