Man withdraws guilty plea in killing of newlywed couple

2 others also charged in killings

Tyreyon Washington is arraigned in court.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville man who pleaded guilty in June to two counts of second-degree murder in the 2011 shooting deaths of a newlywed couple was allowed Tuesday to withdraw his plea.

Tyreyon Washington pleaded guilty to killing Jeanette Hawkins and Ricky Morgan. He entered the plea to avoid the death penalty.

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The couple's burned bodies were found in a wooded area in Brooklyn, just west of downtown, about two weeks after they were reported missing in August 2011.

Two others -- Emanuel Presley and Harochio Varnadore -- are also charged in the killings, which were the result of a drug-related dispute, investigators said.

Ricardo"Ricky"Morgan and JeanetteHawkins

Washington had agreed to testify against the other defendants before withdrawing his plea. The state attorney's office said it will seek the death penalty for all three defendants.

According to the arrest reports of Washington and Presley, Washington admitted to planning, kidnapping and killing the couple.