FORT WORTH -- Tarrant County Jail confirmed to News 8 Monday a 21-year-old was arrested for evidence tampering in the investigation of the death of Ty Pickens, the grandson of billionaire oil magnate T. Boone Pickens.
Brennan Trainor Rodriguez is charged with tampering with evidence. He was released on a $5,000 bond.
According to documents obtained by News 8, investigators believe Rodriguez hid drugs and paraphernalia including spoons, syringes, cotton swabs, heroin, Xanax, and brownies laced with marijuana in a maintenance closet across from his apartment in the 1800 block of Rogers Road.
Thomas Boone Pickens IV, known as Ty, was a student at Texas Christian University at the time of his death in January. He was 21.
Rodriguez is also a TCU student.
"It is difficult to hear about this development, as the TCU community is still mourning Ty s death," said TCU spokeswoman Lisa Albert in a statement. "Because this is a police investigation, all we can do is verify that he is a TCU student. As in all such cases, he has been suspended from the University pending a hearing through the University s disciplinary process."
According to the documents, Rodriguez's cousin, Andrew Tittle, contacted police on January 29 and said he wanted to "come clean" about what happened to Pickens. The next day, he went to the Fort Worth Police Department and gave a written statement.
In the statement, Tittle said Brennan Trainor Rodriguez had contacted him on Jan. 29 and told Tittle he and Pickens were doing heroin and Xanax. Tittle said he observed Rodriguez "shoot up" Pickens with heroin.
Tittle said the next morning when they discovered Pickens unconscious, Rodriguez told him to drive Pickens to the hospital because he didn't want to get in trouble for someone overdosing at his apartment again.
Tittle said about two months earlier, another person had overdosed on heroin at the apartment, but 911 was called and that person survived. However, Rodriguez got in trouble.
The two carried Pickens to Rodriguez's car and Tittle drove Pickens to the hospital while Rodriguez hid the drugs and paraphernalia, according to the statement.
When police first searched the apartment, they had found one syringe on top of the refrigerator.
Rodriguez's next court appearance is scheduled for Mar. 26. Bruce Ashworth, the attorney representing Rodriguez, declined to comment on the case.
Police said the death remains under investigation, but no more arrests are expected at this time.
