Exclusive | Danika Troy’s killers lured daughter into woods, claiming they had crush on her: mom

One of the boys arrested in the cold-blooded murder of Florida teen Danika Troy cruelly tricked her into following them into the woods by claiming he had a crush on her, the slain girl’s mother told The Post.

“Gabe pretended to have feelings for her. That’s how she was lured,” Ashley Troy said of 16-year-old Gabriel Williams, who has been charged with first-degree premeditated murder in the girl’s death along with 14-year-old Kimahri Blevins.

“I still need answers. I’m just left asking why. She just wanted to be in love,” Danika’s heartbroken mother shared.

Ashley reported her 14-year-old daughter missing on Dec. 1, and police found her body in a wooded area in the Panhandle community of Pace the next day after a report from a passerby.

She was shot multiple times, and her body was set on fire.

Police quickly identified Blevins and Williams as the primary suspects, and came to believe during their investigation that the killing was the result of a fight on social media that happened over Thanksgiving break.

Authorities said the boys wanted Danika dead because she blocked Blevins on social media and insulted Williams by calling him “worthless and a gang banger.”

However, Ashley disputed their claims, saying, “What those boys said is an excuse.”

Both teen suspects have had prior “run-ins” with cops, but the nature of those encounters was not immediately clear because they are minors.

In the wake of the horrific murder, the Troy family’s place of worship, Avalon Baptist Church in nearby Milton, is hosting a candlelight vigil in Danika’s honor on Monday night.

The accused killers remain in juvenile detention without bond.

Ashley Troy previously told The Post that although she blames “evil influence” for the savage murder, rather than the boys themselves, she said she wants “nothing less than for them to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.”