A young homeless
man has been arrested in connection with the murder of a
gay University of Texas student who was found strangled to
death in his Arlington apartment on October 31, the
Dallas Morning News reported Saturday.
Kyle Nathan Johnson, 20, was charged with
capital murder in the death of 28-year-old Samuel
Jarnigan Lea. Police made a break in the case after
being tipped off that Lea had let Johnson stay at his
apartment, the newspaper reported. But Lea tried to
kick out his guest after Johnson ate all of his food.
"I'm not clear about the motive [for the killing],"
said Christy Gilfour, an Arlington police spokeswoman.
"That might come out at trial."
Police in the metro Dallas area were trying to
determine if Lea's death was connected to the killings
of six other gay men in the area during the past five
years. Officials said it doesn't appear that this case is
connected and there is no evidence linking the crimes to a
single killer, the News reported.
Police said that after the killing Johnson stole
Lea's pickup truck and later abandoned it. Johnson
then left town for Fort Worth. Johnson was previously
arrested on a misdemeanor marijuana possession in 2002.
(Advocate.com)