The Arlington Police Department hosted a press conference on Thursday to address recent developments made in two murder investigations.
Arlington Police Chief Al Jones addressed the media at 9:30 a.m. at Arlington Police Headquarters.
Jones spoke about two recent murders: one that occurred on Dec. 29, 2023, in the 6500 block of New York Avenue, and another that occurred on Jan. 19, 2024, in the 2200 block of Blue Water Drive.
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
NEW YORK AVENUE HOMICIDE
The murder that took place on Dec. 29 involved a woman who was found in an Arlington parking lot after a reported robbery.
Arlington police were responding to a theft in progress call in the 6500 block of New York Avenue after a passerby reported seeing a woman engaged in a physical struggle with a man.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
When officers arrived on the scene, they found 56-year-old Tho Tieu lying unresponsive in the parking lot. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
“It was just a sad, long, long day. It was hard," said Brandi Freeman, who owns a business in the same strip mall and remembers seeing Tieu's daughter that day.
“Just the hurt on her face, and then just seeing the family as they received the news and just sitting there on the sidewalk and just watching their mom and their loved one laying there, it was just really hard to watch," she recalled.
At Thursday's press conference, police identified the suspect as 35-year-old Fernando Taylor, who they say drove to Arlington from Houston that morning and targeted Tieu.
Based on digital and financial evidence, police said they believed Taylor followed Tieu for at least an hour the morning of her murder as she traveled to multiple businesses and ultimately her restaurant.
According to police, it is unclear why Taylor took an interest in Tieu, but once she arrived at the restaurant, detectives believe Taylor pulled up next to her, stole her purse, and then drove away from the scene.
“I have chills, that’s crazy," said Freeman.
During the struggle for her purse, Tieu fell to the ground and was run over by Taylor’s vehicle as he fled, police said.
Police said they obtained a warrant for Taylor's arrest on one count of capital murder. He was in the Houston area at the time of his arrest, and he was taken into custody without incident by the Houston Police Department.
“It took a long time for me to get over just coming to work and just thinking, ‘Wow, you know, she was going about her everyday routine, just business as usual, not knowing, you know, within minutes, her life would be ended by someone who was just a coward and just greedy," Freeman said.
Taylor is currently being held at the Harris County Jail while he awaits extradition to Tarrant County, where police say they hope to question him more about his motive.
According to the police affidavit, Taylor had just been released from jail for "jugging" and armed robbery before allegedly committing this crime.
Freeman hopes the arrest gives Tieu's family some comfort, along with the memorial that still sits outside her restaurant.
“If it was my mom, I would at least say, ‘Well at least she was loved. At least, you know, people cared about her.’ And it would give me a little bit of peace, probably not much, but, you know, just knowing that she had that impact on people that they would drive over here, take out their time, to wish the family well wishes and say their goodbyes," she said.
Arlington Police Chief Al Jones said they were able to identify Taylor's car and track it down using various surveillance footage, and thanked neighbors who have registered their cameras with the police department.
He also said multiple units came together to solve this case.
“This was a complex investigation with many moving parts,” said Jones. “But thanks to the unwavering dedication and collaborative efforts of our Homicide Unit, Real Time Crime Center, South Patrol District, Community Action Team, NIBIN Engagement Team, Economic Crimes Unit, and our law enforcement partners in Houston, we were able to crack this case open. Some really outstanding police work was done here – and I hope this sends a clear message that if you commit a violent crime in Arlington, we will do everything in our power to deliver justice.”
BLUE WATER DRIVE HOMICIDE
The murder that took place on Jan. 19 involved a man who was beaten to death by three others outside an Arlington apartment.
According to police, officers were called to a fight at an apartment complex on the 2200 block of Blue Water Drive.
Police said when officers arrived at the Waterdance Apartments, they found 51-year-old Frank Kwasnica unresponsive on the ground, with trauma to his head and body. They said he was taken to a hospital where he later died from his injuries.
During Thursday's press conference, police identified the suspects as brothers 22-year-old Brayan Amador Vasquez and 29-year-old Jared Amador Vasquez, and 20-year-old Norlan Gomez-Torres.
Officers said a witness took video of the incident, which showed the three men "yelling numerous things in Spanish to kill the subject and appeared to not stop until the victim was deceased," according to the police affidavit, hitting Kwasnica with two large objects.
Police said the suspects drove off in two cars, one of them Kwasnica's a blue Ford Mustang.
According to the affidavit, Kwasnica's daughter found his car at a nearby location. Inside, officers found a cell phone and a bloody shoe they said belonged to the suspects.
Police were able to track all suspects from that phone, according to documents.
According to Arlington police, members of the U.S. Marshals North Texas Fugitive Task Force found the three suspects in Arlington and took them into custody without incident on Wednesday, Jan. 31. Each of the three suspects was booked into the Arlington City Jail on one count of capital murder.
Police say they're still trying to determine why the suspects went after Kwasnica, but believe it could have started with a car crash.
“What we think is that this was over a car accident that could have occurred. I can't be 100% positive about that. But based on our investigation, that's what we think," said Krystallyne Robinson, the lead detective on the case.
“The victim in this case was beaten so severely, it took us nearly two days to identify him,” said Chief of Police Al Jones. “This was a brutal and horrific attack – and I’m relieved these individuals are off the streets. I applaud our Homicide Unit, Real Time Crime Center, and all of the other APD employees who worked diligently on this case. This type of violence has no place in our community – and I’m proud that our investments in technology, coupled with strong, collaborative investigation by our detectives helped us deliver justice in this instance.”
