FORT WORTH, Texas — Fort Worth police say a 27-year-old man killed a delivery driver by beating him with firewood, according to an arrest warrant obtained by WFAA.
Authorities charged Chrisantus Omondi with murder, aggravated assault of a security officer, and obstruction or retaliation, jail records show. Omondi remains jailed Wednesday at the Tarrant County Corrections Center on a $300,000 bond.
The medical examiner identified the victim as 51-year-old Scott Jackson, a doting grandfather remembered by family for his generosity.
"If it was his last dollar, he'd give it to you," Kasey De Leon, Jackson's daughter, told WFAA Wednesday.
"He'd always do something funny," she continued. "He would just randomly start dancing or make a joke. I'd be like, 'Dad, you're so embarrassing.' I wish I could just tell him so bad. Embarrass me one more time, annoy me one more time. Just bug me."
Jackson's family set up a GoFundMe page to help with funeral expenses.
De Leon and her father operated a firewood delivery business, using rental trucks to tote chopped wood to customers around Tarrant County. Jackson was delivering wood to a repeat customer on Wendover Drive in Fort Worth on Saturday, ahead of an arctic blast's arrival.
The customer, who was injured in the fracas, interviewed with WFAA on condition of anonymity. For clarity, this article will refer to the surviving victim as John Doe.
"As we're loading up the wheelbarrow, this random guy shows up and gets directly in my face and accuses me of being on his property and being in his house," Doe said. "He was extremely naked."
Doe said he and Jackson asked the naked man to leave. Instead, he picked up a piece of firewood and struck Jackson in the head, Doe says.
"It happened so fast," Doe told WFAA. "So, so fast."
An autopsy report attributes Jackson's death to blunt force injuries to the head and neck.
The naked man also struck Doe with firewood and chased him into his backyard, he said. Doe says he escaped into the house, where his family was waiting, and called 911.
"When he was pursuing me and attacking me, I was looking death in the face," Doe added.
An arrest warrant affidavit citing surveillance video and witness accounts corroborates Doe's story and identifies the naked man as Omondi.
A witness told police they saw Omondi dump the wheelbarrow on Jackson before leaving the yard. Court documents indicate Omondi returned to an Airbnb a few homes down Wendover Drive, where he'd rented a single room.
Another tenant renting a different room told police Omondi "came running into the house, yelling at her," the warrant reads. Omondi threatened the woman and tried to force his way into her room, she told authorities.
The woman said she believed the man was high and that she feared for her life, records show.
Police arrived and stunned the man after he did not comply with their instructions, the warrant indicates.
"He took somebody that I'll never be able to call or see again," De Leon said. "I want my dad to get the justice he deserves because he went out in a very bad way."
De Leon said she's torn over how harsh the penalty for her father's killer should be. She wants to forgive the attacker, she said, but is too angry to do so now.
Doe said he believes the punishment should be as severe as possible.
"I would like to see the death penalty," he said. "This man has shown that he doesn't deserve the rest of his life, based on his actions."
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