Authorities in Texas arrested a man who allegedly killed his girlfriend and then sent a photo of her body to his sister.
Michael Ellis, the suspect, shot another man in the leg earlier Tuesday night, according to Houston police.
After shooting the man, Ellis allegedly went to his apartment with girlfriend Lazette King and shot her to death.
He then reportedly photographed King’s body and sent it to his sister. The message also contained an alleged threat against King’s family.
“He told her he was on his way to get her family next,” King’s sister Shatina Thompson told KHOU, the local CBS affiliate.
“That’s when we got in motion to get my parents out of their home because he knows where they live.”
Police arrested Ellis early Wednesday morning. As of Wednesday afternoon, prosecutors had yet to file formal charges.
Detectives are still investigating the motive, but Ellis was known to have mental health issues.
His sister told local NBC affiliate KPRC that he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and was obsessed with conspiracy theories.
She claimed he and the victim frequently argued, and he believed she had been ordered by the government to kill him.
Ellis’ sister told KPRC that he wasn’t taking his medication.
Thompson described King to KHOU as “very free-spirited, happy, someone who would do whatever she could for those that needed.”
“She didn’t deserve what happened to her,” she told me.
