Suspect arrested in stabbing death of homeless man in Montrose
HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A group of homeless people helped solve the murder of one of their own, according to Houston police.
Before 3am Friday, 22-year-old Cory Chapmon was stabbed to death. It appeared he had been preparing to go to sleep on a pallet outside a Montrose charity consignment store. Police have arrested 26-year-old Ardie Scott Powell in connection to the death.
On the other side of the building, a larger group of homeless people were awakened by a man they didn't know.
"He asked us if we wanted to see a dead body," said Brandon Campbell. "And woke us out of our sleep to tell us this. I didn't expect to see no dead body, but it was laying there."
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Chapmon had been sleeping by himself, near the street on Graustark and was vulnerable to an assailant.
Police were somehow called by the homeless, one of them even trying to stall the suspect until officer's arrived.
"Our witness's father is a police officer so she goes into her 'my dad's a cop' mode and starts to question this guy," said HPD homicide detective Phil Waters. "He's very defensive and won't tell his name."
The suspect rode away on his bike, with another member of the homeless group running behind. He tracked him to a nearby Kroger's on Montrose.
"For people to step up and take responsibility for what they saw and what they can contribute to this investigation, it was awesome," said Waters.
For Andrew Nolan, it's a reminder of the inherent risk of living on the streets.
"What was behind that," he asked. "That we'll never know but at least we know we're a little bit safer now that he's not out here."
Powell is expected to be charged with murder.
