BELTON, Texas (KWTX) A murder suspect described as armed and dangerous for whom federal and local authorities were searching in a Belton neighborhood was in custody Thursday.
Antonio Marquis Willis drove to Killeen police headquarters Thursday morning, parked, walked in and surrendered, authorities said.
He was named in a Killeen warrant stemming from the Dec. 21, 2016 shooting death of Donte Javon Samuels, 22, who was found early the next day in the yard of a home in the 300 block of South 56th Street.
Bell County deputies and U.S. marshals zeroed in Wednesday on a home in a Belton neighborhood in the search for Willis.
The officers attempted to serve the warrant Wednesday morning at a home in the 4400 block of Sherwood Drive in the Sherwood Shores housing development, but Willis was not there, sheriff’s Maj. T.J. Cruz said.
An affidavit issued in late December for the arrest of a Killeen woman, Tarah Ann Nichols, 28, who’s charged with tampering with evidence in connection with the deadly shooting, provided some detail about what police think led to Samuels’ death.
The affidavit says that on the night of the shooting, Samuels knocked on the door of a home in the 4100 block of Water Street, where Nichols and another man were staying.
The man told Samuels to leave, the affidavit said, but Samuels returned later and broke the windshield of Nichols’ vehicle.
Another man, identified as “Honcho,” had come by the house and was there when Samuels returned, the affidavit said.
The man who was staying with Nichols told officers he saw “Honcho” tell Samuels to leave and then saw him point a revolver at Samuels and fire one shot, the affidavit said.
Samuels, who was wearing dark clothing, ran in the direction of 38th street, the affidavit said.
The night after the shooting, the affidavit said, Nichols and the man who was staying with her removed a surveillance system from the home that included five cameras.
Nichols was taken into custody on Dec. 30.
Her bond was set at $500,000.
She remains in the Bell County Jail.
After the arrest, police released a surveillance image that showed the suspect in the shooting.
