Kendrick Akins, a 39-year-old man from Texas, was taken into custody for the murder of his fiancée, Dominic Jefferson, near her home in the 5500 block of Holley View Drive block in Houston after they made their engagement official on New Year’s Eve.
The 33-year-old victim of the crime, Jefferson, unexpectedly lost her life three days after the engagement when her future spouse, Akins, shot her fatally on Saturday evening after the couple was allegedly spotted fighting in the parking lot of the building where the late woman lived.
The loud argument did not go unnoticed, because one of Jefferson’s neighbors tried to break the fighting and defend her, but unsuccessfully, as Akins shot at him.
The couple was arguing over car problems. The victim was planning to drive with a female friend to her boyfriend’s work, but the vehicle would not start, so Akins came down to find out what was going on.
According to reports, Jefferson yelled at him, and things escalated from there. He allegedly pulled out his gun, and the victim was reportedly heard saying, “Go ahead, shoot me.”
Following what was happening, witnesses of the altercation contacted the police, and not long after that, the officers arrived at the crime scene, only to find the unresponsive body of Jefferson next to a parked vehicle that had its door opened and no trace of her fiancé.
Akins immediately became the main suspect of the case, because some of the witnesses of the argument allegedly recognized him and informed the policemen of their earlier fight.
According to relatives of the deceased woman, Akins and Jefferson had been dating for a couple of months before deciding to tie the knot, and so far, they have always appeared to be very happy together and pretty much in love.
After the tragic incident, Jefferson’s sister, Charmone Onyeije, stated that nobody deserved to die in that manner and that she was not going to let her sibling die in vain, but would celebrate her life instead.
Onyeije was interviewed by KHOU-TV and said: “Nobody deserves to die like that.”
She added: “He just proposed to her in front of the whole world. I want to know why. Why would you do this? You say you loved her.”
One commenter also shared: “It’s important to know who you’re with. This man had problems more than the eye could see and in no way was capable of loving anyone, let alone himself! If only she knew! Condolences to her family. What a tragic loss ?.”
In 2008, Akins faced a felony conviction for aggravated assault, and in 2015, he was hit with another one for felon in possession of a weapon.
This time, he was charged with murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Bond was set at $325,000 for the two charges. It was increased on Monday when the suspect appeared in court.
Akins’s lawyer, a public defendant, hopes that he will be placed in protective custody because the victim has relatives in jail.
He explained: “The (victim) has brothers in jail, and I guess there have been Facebook posts indicating that once he hits the floor, they plan on attacking him. He’s just asking the court to take that into consideration.”
Authorities are trying to use the sensational case to bring more awareness to the issue of domestic violence.
