Abilene Police have arrested four suspects in the New Years Eve death of a 20-year-old man in the 2500 block of Rountree, just a block north of campus.
Abilene Police Department detectives arrested Michael Wright-Collazo, 18, Tyree Neal, 17, Rodaeshi Hines, 17, and Creshawn Howard, 18, in connection to the death of David Devora, a 2018 Abilene High School graduate attending Austin Community College. The four suspects have been charged on counts of murder and aggravated robbery. A fifth subject of interest is being interviewed, say police.
According to police, Devora was visiting the residence in the Hillcrest neighborhood when he was shot through the front door of the residence and killed at about 8 p.m. Dec. 31.
Rick Tomlin, APD public information coordinator, said the department has not released information related to motive for the killing.
“This continues to be an ongoing investigation,” Tomlin said. “The case, once complete by detectives, will be forwarded to the district attorney’s office.”
ACU Police Chief Jimmy Ellison sent a Timely Warning notification about the homicide at 10:36 p.m. on Dec. 31 to members of the ACU community. According to the email, police responded at about 8:20 p.m. to a report of a shooting at a residence in close proximity to campus. Upon arrival, officials declared Devora deceased.
“Because there was a homicide, which obviously is a Clery category crime, that occurred in very close proximity to campus we felt like a Timely Warning under the Clery Act was required and would also be a good idea for our community,” Ellison said. “But it was believed early on that this was not a random crime. This was a targeted incident at that individual, at that residence.”
Timely Warnings are required by the U.S. Department of Education under the Clery Act intended to give campus communities a general awareness of what crimes have occurred, the status of the current situation and any particular steps the general public can take to protect their wellbeing.
To not dilute the impact of a Timely Warning, Ellison said he reserves them for serious crimes which may pose ongoing personal safety risks for the general public.
“The Timely Warning aspect comes into play if you’ve had a serious crime that is one of the Clery category crimes and, in the opinion of the Chief of Police, there is an ongoing risk of danger to the community,” Ellison said. “We are constantly filtering everything that occurs on our campus and then in our immediate area surrounding campus.”
The ACU campus and geographical regions in close proximity are patrolled 24/7 by ACUPD and APD. Report crimes or suspicious activity to ACUPD at 325-674-2911.
