The investigation into a murder in Plano on Tuesday evening led detectives to DFW Airport, where they arrested a California man around 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday morning.
Plano police and firefighters were called to the 4600 block of Bending Oak Trail around 6:30 p.m. Tuesday after a resident of the home called 911 to report that a dead man had been found in the backyard.
Independent photojournalist Lilly Ferguson had listened to the police radios and rushed to the crime scene on Tuesday evening.
“There was a call about a dead person in a backyard,” she said. “There was a lot of blood in the house.”
The victim was identified as 69-year-old Patrick King of Elburn, Illinois.
Plano Police Department spokeswoman Jennifer Chapman said King suffered “blunt force trauma,” but the medical examiner’s office will determine the cause and manner of death.
A few hours after detectives arrived at the crime scene, they identified the murder suspect and tracked him down at Dallas–Fort Worth International Airport.
Andrew James Swetland, 39, of Los Angeles, is booked into the Collin County Jail on murder charges.
The police have not yet released any information about a possible motive. There is also no information about how and where exactly the arrest took place at DFW and whether Swetland had booked a flight after the brutal attack.
Swetland and King knew each other, police said, and the killing was not a random act of violence. Plano police confirmed to NBC 5 that Swetland is the homeowner’s brother-in-law and that King had been visiting the homeowner.
Several sections of the quiet, affluent neighborhood off Hedgcoxe Road are cordoned off with police cordons.
Investigators at the crime scene wearing protective clothing were seen entering and leaving the house.
Detectives went house to house looking for surveillance videos that could help in the investigation.
Officers also temporarily closed the alley to traffic to collect possible evidence.
A neighbor told NBC 5 that the family living in the house had only recently moved in.
Curious neighbors passed by the crime scene on foot or by bicycle and feared that it might have been a random attack.
“I am shocked that something like this happened in our neighborhood and I hope there is a reason for this and it is not a coincidence,” said resident Donna, who did not want to give her last name.
Chapman tried to reassure worried neighbors by stressing that this was an isolated incident.
“Plano has always been a safe community. We consider ourselves a safe community,” she said. “This was not a random act of violence. These two individuals knew each other and our investigators worked diligently and quickly throughout the night to make this arrest.”
Police say Swetland is expected to be arraigned Wednesday morning. It is unclear if he has an attorney to speak on his behalf.
The investigation into King’s death is ongoing.
