DALLAS – A 58-year-old Texas man has been indicted in connection with the murders of two homeless men in 2020, according to NBCDFW.
Adelaido Amaya Esparza was arrested on Nov. 23 for the murders of Daniel Slusser, 60, and Fredrick Hoylee Billmeier.
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According to NBCDFW, Billmeier was found bludgeoned to death at a bus stop in the 2800 block of North Hampton Road on Oct. 20 and Slusser was bludgeoned to death on Nov. 20 in the 2100 block of Fort Worth Avenue, just over one mile away from where Billmeier was killed.
An affidavit obtained by the NYPost says that surveillance footage appears to show someone walk up to Slusser and strike him “several times with a full-size sledgehammer” while he slept beneath a blanket.
Investigators were led to Esparza as the suspect after a database search for a black SUV that was seen driving away from where Slusser’s body was found.
The NYPost reported that the attacker, believed to be Esparza, was seen putting a bloody sledgehammer with duct tape around it in the back of a black 2001 Honda Passport after the attack on Nov. 20.
The affidavit says police identified what appeared to be a sledgehammer handle in the back of the black Honda outside Esparza’s home.
After spotting the sledgehammer handle, Esparza was stopped by police for an improper lane change after leaving his home. Dallas police, according to the NYPost, took Esparza into custody during the traffic stop due to having an expired license and no insurance.
Police found a sledgehammer with duct tape on the handle and blood on the head of the hammer during a search of Esparza’s vehicle. The affidavit states that Esparza denied any involvement in Slusser’s death but admitted he’s the only person who drove the Honda.
Police said the attacker in Billmeier’s murder is “impossible to identify” but that there is a “high possibility” it’s the same person responsible for the death of Slusser due to the close proximity of the murders and the fact that DNA belonging to both men was found on the sledgehammer.
Esparza was indicted, according to NBDDFW, on Dec. 29.
Information from Dallas County Sheriff’s Office shows that Esparza’s bond is set at $500,000.