Teens arrested after sharing Snapchat video while stealing necklace from dead body

Two teenagers from Texas were arrested and charged with felony theft after they shared a Snapchat video of themselves stealing from a dead body they found in a ditch and laughing about it.

Bethany Martin, 17, and an unnamed 16-year-old female friend reportedly found the deceased last Monday, while walking in a recently developed neighbourhood. They told authorities that they spotted "something awkward by the drainage ditch and went to take a closer look." The girls had also called a male friend to the scene before they called the cops.

The trio had discovered the body of 25-year-old Marcus Adams, who was believed to have committed suicide. His family has since set up a GoFund Me page to help with funeral expenses.

The teenagers, on the other hand, brought trouble upon themselves when the Bexar County Sheriff's Office learned of their Snapchat video. Officials told People that the clip that circulated had shown Martin "removing jewellery from the decedent's neck." Sheriff Javier Salazar said that he "wouldn't believe that it happened" if it was not captured on video.

"When my homicide sergeant pulled me aside and said 'I'm going to show you video that's going to be very, very disturbing. And he showed me the video and it was, I'm, I'm shook! I am still shook. I'm disturbed by it," he recounted.

Martin has since been released on $2,000 bail following her arrest last Tuesday. She was charged as an adult with felony theft from a human corpse or grave. Her companion also got the same charge although she is considered a juvenile.

"It was disturbing because they're laughing. 'I can't believe you're doing this,' or words to that effect, treating it as a joke," Salazar said.

A police affidavit revealed that the teenagers used Martin's phone to record the ordeal and later posted it to Snapchat. She told investigators that she removed the necklace carefully without touching the corpse. She then gave it to her female companion, who fancied it because it "matched her fashion style."

The girls admitted that they only took the pendant and tossed the chain in a nearby grassy area. The 16-year old has since surrendered the jewellery and it was returned to the deceased's family. Meanwhile, Adams' family also condemned the acts of the teenagers.

"The arrogance and insensitivity of some people in this world makes me sick to my stomach. What kind of world do we really live in? Has the world gone mad?," his aunt wrote in a piece on Sheen Magazine adding, "That one's first response to such an event would be to pull out your camera and start videoing and robbing someone who has passed away before calling for help? How do you mentally process such behavior?"

Adams' bereaved family does not believe that he committed suicide. They feel that "something is not right" because they know that "he loved life." They want answers and have since asked for a second autopsy to determine the cause of his death.