HOUSTON — A man accused of killing Darrell Gentry, a rapper known on social media as BTB Savage, has been arrested, according to the Houston Police Department.
Montrel Lenard Burley, 40, was charged with murder on Friday, April 7 after the deadly shooting on Mid Lane in the River Oaks area at the end of March.
Court records revealed that they were able to identify Burley as a suspect by using cell phone records and license plate readers following the shooting. Burley turned himself in on Tuesday, officials said.
The suspects were driving a black Subaru at the time of the shooting which was spotted in the Galleria area and tracked heading to New Braunfels.
Here's a timeline of events that led up to the arrest:
February 3, 2023
Documents show Gentry was involved in the shooting death of Omar Richardson in San Antonio in February.
According to KHOU 11's sister station KENS 5, Richardson was shot by Gentry's girlfriend in self-defense during an attempted robbery. San Antonio police did not press charges against Gentry or his girlfriend.
March 26, 2023
An interview with Gentry was published on YouTube with popular hip-hop blogger DJ Vlad. It's not known when the interview was recorded, but Gentry discussed the shooting that happened when he claims Richardson pulled out a gun and tried to rob him during a recording session.
When asked about retaliation, Gentry appeared prepared.
"Are you at all concerned that his people are going to try to come back?" DJ Vlad asked.
"They for sure might do what they might do," Gentry said. "But I'm going to get active. That's all it is. It is what it is."
March 30, 2023
Gentry was shot to death in a deadly drive-by shooting that police called a "targeted" incident in one of Houston's richest neighborhoods.
Witnesses told police that around 6 p.m., they saw a black Subaru with dark windows pull up next to the victim's Mercedes, with two suspects getting out of the car, and firing dozens of bullets into the car.
Hours before the shooting, documents show Gentry posted on Instagram photos of him standing in what appeared to be blood next to a door with bullet holes. Police believe the pictures were from the shooting scene in San Antonio.
Around 11 p.m., surveillance footage from a neighbor in New Braunfels captures a man wiping down a black Subaru inside and out.
March 31, 2023
Surveillance footage from the same neighbor catches a man and woman getting inside a black Subaru just before 7 a.m. The couple was later pulled over by New Braunfels SWAT and found Burley inside the vehicle with a woman who was driving.
According to court documents, both were arrested and Burley was charged with narcotics possession. Burley was questioned about his whereabouts during the shooting but stated he wasn't in the black Subaru when it happened and that someone asked to use the vehicle. He later asked for an attorney and ended the interview.
Burley's girlfriend, Passion James, said that the black Subaru was rented from AVIS prior to the shooting because Burley was in a car accident. James also told investigators that she knew Burley had a cousin named "Omar" who was killed earlier this year. James stated she did not know Omar's last name.
The court documents state that Burley and Richardson were not related, but that they would refer to each other as brothers.
Documents show that a rifle shell casing fell from the rear door of the black Subraru while the New Braunfels Crime Scene Unit investigated during the traffic stop. The shell casing was similar to the ones found at the River Oaks shooting scene.
April 3, 2023
Gentry's mother, Bernita Ward, told investigators that her son was staying at an Airbnb near the Galleria. Documents say that Gentry was receiving death threats from Richardson's family members after the February shooting and that she advised him to get away.
Gentry told his mother he was going to head to Las Vegas on March 30 or March 31, before he was killed. His mother said Gentry was on the way to the airport when he was shot.
April 7, 2023
Burley was charged with murder after they confirmed his cell phone and the black Subaru were in the area of Mid Lane at the time of the shooting.
Court documents state that his phone and car were both tracked back to New Braunfels hours after the shooting. Burley's phone was also tracked to be in the Galleria area for several hours near where Gentry stayed on March 30.
April 11, 2023
Houston police confirmed Burley was arrested in connection to Gentry's death. Police are still searching for another suspect who has yet to be identified.
Burley appeared in court Tuesday morning and had his bond set at $1 million.
READ MORE ON THE DEADLY SHOOTING OF BTB SAVAGE: