A Wynnewood teenager was sentenced Monday to life in prison without the possibility of parole for his role in a double murder at a Garvin County marijuana farm in April of 2025.
Nineteen-year-old Whyitt Collins was one of two teens arrested last May in connection to the murders of 56-year-old Bao Ming Ma and 42-year-old Alejandro Baltazar Hernandez at a marijuana grow north of Wynnewood. The men, who were employees of the grow facility, were found shot to death in a residence on the property.
Collins pleaded guilty in March to two counts of first-degree murder and one count of first-degree burglary for the crimes.
During the sentencing hearing Monday, OSBI agent Josh Dean testified about the crime scene and Collins’ statements to law enforcement officials after his arrest last year.
According to Dean, Collins initially told officers he knew of the murders, but had nothing to do with them. He later offered a second story in which he shot Ma and Hernandez in self-defense after they discovered him at the grow, before finally admitting he and his 16-year old cousin went to the grow the night of the murders to steal marijuana plants. Once there the teens found plants not ready to be harvested and decided to enter the residence to steal money. Finding Hernandez and Ma inside, they attempted to rob them at gunpoint.
Dean said the third account matched the evidence found at the scene.
Dean said the residence was a typical home setting and that agents found no money or marijuana inside the residence during the investigation. The victims were found in separate bedrooms in the home.
According to Dean’s testimony, Collins told police during the robbery he held Hernandez at gunpoint in one room, while the other teen held Ma at gunpoint in the second room. Collins said he heard a gunshot and then the other teen called to him by his first name. Not wanting to leave “loose ends,” Collins then shot Hernandez. Dean said Collins later shot Ma again to stop him from making a gurgling sound as the teens tried to find and collect the spent shell casings.
Dean said the two boys left the residence with several packages of cigarettes and a pair of Apple AirPods, returning to the other teen’s home about three miles away. Dean said Collins still had the AirPods in his possession when he was taken into custody a month later.
During Monday’s hearing, prosecutor Christy Miller read a victim’s impact statement from Ma’s son on behalf of his family, who live outside the U.S. and were unable to attend.
Ma’s son described him as a loving husband and father who was kind, authentic and hard-working. He was the family’s breadwinner, and since his death, his son said, the family has experienced financial pressures and uncertain living conditions.
“The pain is permanent and irreversible. We will carry this trauma for the rest of our lives,” Miller read to the court, “Our family will never be the same.”
Collins’ court-appointed defense attorney, Lauren Canaan, asked the court to consider the defendant’s age, his lack of previous criminal history and unstable childhood home life in deciding sentencing.
“We ask the court for mercy,” Canaan said.
Canaan asked the court to consider a sentence of life without parole, with all but the first 40-years suspended.
“We would ask for a sentence where he could eventually get out and be a contributing member of society, to redeem himself and somehow right this,” Canaan said. “We are not excusing his actions. His actions were violent and we understand that. We agree there should be justice. There can be mercy and justice.”
The prosecution pointed to the callousness shown by Collins during the crime in asking the court to impose a sentence of life in prison without parole.
“I realize he’s only 19. This qualifies as a death penalty case. He’s already gotten a break in that sense, because we’ve taken his age into account,” Miller said. “Two innocent men lost their lives that night. All this defendant had to do was leave.”
District Judge Leah Edwards sentenced Collins to life without parole on both of the first-degree murder charges and 20 years in prison on the first-degree burglary complaint.
“Mr. Collins, It brings the court absolutely no satisfaction to sentence you today. The court has read and reread the pre-sentencing investigation, looking for reason to give you mercy,” Edwards said before sentencing Collins. “The court found no remorse, no justification – other than to say you were high on meth at the time – and no regard for the lives of two men you took violently and needlessly. This isn’t a sentence the court takes lightly. It is a sentence that is difficult, wrenching and harsh, but one that is necessary.”