2 men to stand trial in slaying of 16-year-old Michigan girl

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – A western Michigan man has been ordered to stand trial in the slaying of a 16-year-old girl who previously had accused him of sexual assault.

Defence attorneys on Friday waived the preliminary examinations for 42-year-old Quinn James and his co-defendant, 58-year-old Gerald Bennett.

James of Wyoming, Michigan, is charged with first-degree murder and kidnapping. Bennett, of Detroit, is charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder.

Mujey Dumbuya’s partially clothed body was found in January in woods in Kalamazoo, about 50 miles (80 kilometres) southeast of her Grand Rapids home. She had been strangled.

James also is accused of sexually assaulting Mujey last summer. He was free on bond in the rape case when her body was found.