An arrest warrant affidavit for Ocastor Ferguson, the man accused of killing Kayla Kelley earlier this month, reveals new details on what investigators believe happened to her car.
According to the document obtained Monday by NBC 5, Kelley's 2017 Acura MDX was set on fire sometime between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. on Jan. 11, a time substantiated by smoke seen on surveillance video, though it wasn't found by police until a passerby spotted the burned-out vehicle at about 9:21 a.m. on Jan. 12.
Officials said the Frisco Fire Department was called about the vehicle seen along the 8400 block of County Road 24 and that firefighters said the vehicle burned until it was totally consumed by fire and burned itself out.
Fire investigators looking into the vehicle soon learned it had not been reported stolen and that the vehicle's 33-year-old owner had been reported missing. They then notified the Collin County Sheriff's Office about the missing woman's vehicle being located.
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Investigators with the sheriff's department said they learned the missing woman had been dating 32-year-old Ocastor Ferguson and that phone records showed the pair were in contact up until she disappeared. According to the arrest warrant, Ferguson told investigators he was with her on Jan. 10 and went to her residence after she picked him up at work at 11 p.m.
Records from the North Texas Transit Authority showed Kelley's vehicle headed north on the Dallas North Tollway into North Frisco in the early hours of Jan. 11.
Call records showed Ferguson in the area of County Road 24, where the burned-out car was found, at about the same time the vehicle was on fire. According to investigators, Ferguson then got a ride from a ride-share service and was taken to his home in Grand Prairie.
According to the affidavit, investigators with the sheriff's office also learned Ferguson bought items to set the car on fire, a lighter and gas can, on Jan. 10.
Ferguson, who was charged with Kelley's murder last week, after her body was found near his home in Grand Prairie. Ferguson has also been charged with arson, a second-degree felony, and kidnapping, a third-degree felony. Ferguson is being held on bonds totaling more than $2.5 million. An attorney was not listed.
An attached court document seeking a higher bail amount for Ferguson said he is a Jamaican national with few ties to the local area. Police said Ferguson recently returned to North Texas after visiting the island country.
