Dante Thomas is charged with murder in the shooting death of his great-aunt, 68-year-old Charlotte Ellis. He’s also charged with aggravated assault, accused of shooting and critically injuring his cousin, 45-year-old Damitra Ellis.They were both found shot in their pickup truck outside Willowbrook Mall Wednesday night. Damitra Ellis is still in the hospital and may now be blind.Houston police said Thomas had been living with both victims since he was released on bond from the Harris County Jail on January 30. In that case, Thomas was charged in the murder of his girlfriend Linda Vu.Vu’s roommate, Kylon Buffington, found Vu stabbed to death in their apartment inNorthwest Harris County.Now those closest to the tragedies are questioning why Thomas was ever allowed out of jail.Kylon Buffington just wants to know why—why Thomas, his friend and former classmate, could have snapped, allegedly stabbing Vu to death.“I didn’t really see any signs of aggression from him towards her,” said Buffington. “That just turned the world upside down a lot because it’s like, well you thought you knew somebody, but you really don’t know anybody really.”Buffington lived with the couple and Vu’s two young children. He came home Jan. 27 to find Vu’s body and her kids crying nearby.“The image is still in my head. It’s not an easy image to get out,” said Buffington.Living with that image, Buffington can’t understand why Thomas was released from jail on bond, only to be charged again, in the Wednesday night shootings of his aunt and cousin.“It could have been prevented if they would have kept him in longer; the bond was low,” said Thomas.Thomas’ aunt died. His cousin was critically injured.“That’s people who love you, who care for you,” said Buffington.Thomas posted a $50,000 bond after he was arrested for stabbing Vu. That’s the standard bond for murder in Harris County. The District Attorney can ask the judge to increase it, based on the suspect’s past criminal history. But Thomas didn’t have a record before all this started.He’s now being held without bond.More details are trickling in. The court documents filed to revoke Thomas’ bailshow he called his mother to pick him up near Willowbrook Mall shortly after the shootings and, while crying hysterically, told her that his aunt and cousin were dead.He said he’d had a fight with his cousin earlier in the day. According to the documents, Thomas’ mother believed he shot the two women and was taking him to turn himself in to police, when he jumped out of the car on the way.The U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Violent Offenders Task Force caught up with Thomas Thursday night in Northwest Harris County and brought him back to jail.It’s a relief to those closest to the tragedy.But there’s no relief from the questions.“I don’t know what went wrong,” said Buffington.
Saturday, March 7, 2015
Man Confessed To Murdering Girlfriend In Front Of Her Children Released On Bail & Then Murders His Aunt & Shoots His Cousin
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