HOUSTON — The search continues for the body of Felicia Johnson as well as for the man charged with her murder.
The 24-year-old from California went missing in Houston on April 16. Houston Police have named Chukweubuka Nwobodo, 28, the suspect in the killing. He's been charged with murder and tampering with evidence but is still on the run. Lamar Consolidated ISD confirmed Nwobodo graduated from its district in 2011.
“I think we got work to do and we are ready to do it," Texas Equusearch founder Tim Miller said.
It was his volunteer group that found Johnson’s purse in Bear Creek Park, close to where Johnson’s family found her phone.
Although Houston police believe Johnson was murdered, they still have not found her body.
“Bear Creek Park, it’s thick in some areas, there are little roads that go off, some little areas that would be simple to pull in and dump something and get out without being seen," Miller said. “My fear is now, hopefully, I’m wrong, is this is one of them cases where she is never going to be found."
According to court documents, here’s the timeline homicide detectives have laid out:
On April 16 at 2:56 a.m., Johnson is last seen at the Intercontinental Hotel in the Medical Center. She gets into an Uber that HPD said was ordered by Nwobodo. Detectives said he responded to an ad Johnson placed online. The Uber took Johnson to Nwobodo’s old address on Windchase. Then, he picked her up and took her to his apartment on South Richmond, according to police.
An hour later, his car is seen on surveillance video leaving the complex, and at 5:12 a.m., Johnson’s phone connects with a cell tower near where her family finds it in Bear Creek Park later that day.
The next two days, HPD said, receipts show Nwobodo took out money, and purchased supplies. His internet searches included things like “most forested part of Houston.”
On May 13, detectives got search warrants for his car and apartment. He was taken into custody during a traffic stop, but it’s unclear when he was released. In his apartment, investigators found “very strong support” of Johnson’s DNA, and in Nwobodo's car, they found a gun, knife and shovel.
If you have any information, call Crime Stoppers at 713222-TIPS (8477).