One of the seven suspects charged in the deadly Mansfield, TX home invasion that claimed the life of 21-year-old Ethan Walker on July 26, 2016 has agreed to testify against Tay-K and others.
Megan Holt, 21, reached a deal with prosecutors to ensure she doesn’t receive the death penalty, the Star-Telegram reports. Holt will reportedly testify against her co-defendants in exchange for the state waiving the capital murder charge against her, according to the agreement.
She will instead plead guilty to aggravated robbery and receive 20 years in prison. The deal will not be finalize until the after the conclusion of the trials of her co-defendants.
The first suspect in Tay-K’s murder case was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Friday, Feb. 23, the Star-Telegram reports. The 17-year-old girl has not been named due to her age.
Prosecutors described the “petite, pretty blonde” as the mastermind behind the planned robbery that claimed the life of Walker. She was accused of coming up with the idea to steal drugs and money from Zachary Beloate, a man she was romantically involved with.
The teen, Megan Holt and third female suspect Ariana Bharrat attempted steal money and drugs from Beloate, but failed in their attempt. They then recruited Tay-K, Jalen Bell (Pimpyz), Sean Robinson and Latharian Merritt for their next attempt.
On the night of Walker’s murder, the three female suspects went to Beloate’s house to set up the robbery, but called it off due to there being too many people in the home.
They returned later that night and one of the female suspects quietly unlocked the front door so that the male accomplices could enter.
Bharrat and Holt began “acting weird, going in and out of the room,” the teen stated in an affidavit. Holt went to the kitchen to get a drink of water three times in 20 minutes.
The witness could see a group text message of “hit a lick” and “is it a go” on Ariana’s phone. Megan’s name was also reportedly in the group text. “Hit a lick” means to rob a person or burglarize a home.
The suspects didn’t find drugs and money, but demanded cellphones.
Walker was shot in the stomach while sitting on the floor as instructed. Beloate was shot in the shoulder while fighting with one of the suspects during the robbery. He survived the shooting and ran to a neighbor’s house to get help.
The three women fled the house behind the robbers and drove away in Megan’s car.
Megan and Ariana were arrested on July 27 and July 28, 2016, respectively. The two women face a charge of capital murder, and are being held on $500,000 in Tarrant County Jail.
Latharian was arrested on Aug. 3, 2016 and being held at $145,000 bail. He faces a capital murder charge. Sean Robinson was arrested 16 days after the crime on Aug. 11, and is being held on $800,000 bail. He faces a charge of capital murder, attempted capital murder and two counts of aggravated robbery.
The teen girl will be jailed in a juvenile detention center. She could potentially be paroled at age 19 or the Texas Juvenile Justice Department could request a transfer hearing before her 19th birthday.
A juvenile judge will decided whether she should be paroled or transferred to adult prison to complete her sentence. If she goes to adult prison, she would have to serve at least half of her sentence before becoming eligible for parole.
