A man just days away from standing trial for the murder of a 9-year-old girl in Dallas County is missing after the District Attorney's office said 23-year-old Tyrese Simmons removed his ankle monitor.
In just three days, a Dallas County jury was set to hear the case against Simmons.
The 23-year-old is charged with the 2019 murder of 9-year-old Brandoniya Bennett.
Dallas Police said the little girl was killed when Simmons, who was feuding with a fellow rapper, fired into her Old East Dallas apartment by mistake.
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A second man charged with Bennett's murder, Davonte Benton, was convicted last year and sentenced to 45 years in prison.
But one week ahead of Simmons’s trial, Dallas County pretrial services said it received a tamper alert from the ankle monitor Simmons has worn since he was released on bond back in December of 2019.
Court documents say all attempts to contact Simmons have been unsuccessful and that his whereabouts remain unknown.
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His disappearance comes just days after Governor Greg Abbott signed a bill into law that criminalizes tampering with ankle monitors.
It’s legislation that was proposed after a man on parole killed two Methodist Dallas Medical Center employees in October, and it had the support of several North Texans including Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia.
“We’re giving too many chances to our violent criminals and not giving enough chances to our victims and communities and neighborhoods,” said Garcia at a press conference about the bill back in March.
Friday night, the District Attorney's office said a warrant for Simmons's arrest remained active.
