"Eyewitness" in Ogallala Stabbing Now Charged With the Murder.

In a stunning development, the man who claimed to be an eyewitness to a 2017 murder case in Ogallala, Nebraska, has been charged with being the killer.

Recently authorities dropped murder charges against Amadeus Leroux, the Colorado teenager initially accused of the crime. He was 15-years old when charged. His attorney, Maren Chaloupka, told NET News it's "the best news I've ever given the client."

"Amadeus is innocent. He always has been and he did not commit this crime," she said.

Last week, without fanfare, Keith County Attorney Randy Fair filed new second-degree murder charges against Larry Derrera, who first implicated Leroux in the homicide.

On Tuesday morning Derrera appeared in county court and will be kept in jail unless he can post a $500,000 bond. He will be given the opportunity to enter a plea on June 6.

Derrera told a Nebraska State Patrol investigator he witnessed the stabbing death of an acquaintance, John Fratis. He blamed Leroux, who was visiting Ogallala and stayed overnight, for the murder.

Leroux was arrested the same day. Although 15 years old at the time of the crime he was charged as an adult. The trial was delayed while his attorney argued the case should be heard by a Juvenile Court judge. The Nebraska Supreme Court ultimately ruled there was nothing in state law keeping the trial from proceeding and, potentially, imposing the harsher penalties allowed for adults.

Only then did the county attorney request the Nebraska State Patrol Crime Lab process DNA found on the bloody knife left in the sink of the home. The tests could not verify Leroux held the weapon. There was “significant DNA” found indicating Derrera, the accuser, held the knife. He has now been charged with 2nd Degree murder and the Leroux was no longer implicated in the crime.

The switch in suspects followed the county attorney’s decision to hire Drew Armstrong, a private investigator and retired FBI agent, to review the evidence.

Armstrong’s conclusions, found in an affidavit filed with the county court, claim Derrera and his girlfriend, RayLynn Garcia, “engaged in a cover-up and fabrication of the truth” to pin the murder on the teenager. Garcia has not been charged in conjunction with the case.

The affidavit adds Derrera had a history of fights with his alleged victim.

From the start, Derrera had been identified as a potential suspect by at least one party interviewed by police. He also had “a substantial amount” of the victim’s blood on his clothing and shoes. The private investigator wrote there “was absolutely no blood” from the victim found on Leroux.

Derrara proved to be a problematic witness for the prosecution. At one point, he and Garcia traveled to Alaska in violation of probation, forcing law enforcement officers to travel at tax-payer expense to escort them back to Nebraska.

Garcia has since returned to Alaska with their two children. A third child is due in June. The private investigator's report also identifies the couple as being "first cousins."

To date, Keith County Attorney Randy Fair has not commented publicly about dropping the original charges against the innocent teenager.

While noting "the last three years have been very stressful" for her client, Chaloupka praised Fair's reconsideration of the original charges while continuing to examine the evidence.

"We're very, very thankful for the professionalism of the county attorney in making that decision," she said.

"That is a tough call for prosecutors to make, especially in a case that is as serious as a murder case and not a lot of prosecutors will make that call."

She added, "that's how the system ought to work more often."

Asked if Leroux deserved an apology from the county attorney, Chaloupka replied "the people who most need to apologize to him are Larry Derrera and RayLinn Garcia for falsely accusing him and I don't expect that they're going to do that anytime soon."

Leroux continues to live in Colorado with family while finishing his high school degree, taking classes online.