AUSTIN, Texas — Investigators revealed new details Tuesday regarding the murder of a 20-year-old in North Austin.
Six people now face capital murder charges related to the murder of Xavier Jones Sr., who was shot to death on Nov. 25, 2024, at the Bridge at Granada apartments on East Wonsley Drive.
According to investigators, multiple armed individuals forced their way into Jones’ apartment by shooting out the rear sliding glass door.
Once inside, police said the individuals assaulted a woman who lived in the home, pointed a gun at a child, and then stole cash and jewelry from Jones after shooting him multiple times. Jones died before making it to the hospital.
After months of investigating, the U.S. Marshals-led Lone Star Fugitive Task Force arrested five people in connection to Jones’ murder. A sixth person, who was already in Travis County Jail on an unrelated crime, was also charged.
Suspects allegedly targeted Jones through social media
Police said Jones’ murder was not “random,” but that he wasn’t necessarily known to the suspects either.
Through their investigation, they learned Jones was targeted through social media posts after the suspects noticed he had about $50,000 in cash and jewelry.
Police said Jones did not post anything out of the ordinary, but that he likely wasn’t aware the suspects were following his posts “with malintent.”
According to investigators, a coordinated operation was required to arrest the suspects because they were spread around Austin. The task force used nearly 30 officers to saturate the city to ensure no one got away and arrested five of the people involved between Jan. 29 and 30.
Police said the six individuals involved had an extensive criminal history and had gang associations that were discovered as they “floated around” with some organized activity.
All the individuals arrested are between the ages of 20 and 22 years old. The six people charged in connection to Jones’ murder are Cameron Perkins, Lorance Jones, Rhianna Farillas, Jon Williard, Judaren Forbes and Corey Keazer.
Meanwhile, police said they also recovered multiple pistols, an AR-15 and another rifle with a scope along with additional magazines during their operation.
Statement from Jones’ family
Xavier Jones Sr.’s mother, Yvonne Jones, issued a statement regarding the arrests, which read in part, “What happened to my son was not called for because six criminals just wanted a watch, one in which not all six of them could wear at one time … [We] only ask that my son gets the true justice that he deserves by way of what all six of these monsters did to him.”