CHINA SPRING, Texas — “This is one of the most horrific, horrible, brutal, senseless attacks that we have seen in a long time,” said McLennan County Sheriff Parnell McNamara.
That's how Sheriff McNamara describes the murder on Saturday morning in China Spring.
36-year-old Richard Ozment was arrested in connection to the murder of 38-year-old Michaela Brooker.
The Sheriff tells 25 News his office received a call from one of Ozment's parents around 9 a.m. Saturday in the 15000 block of Old China Spring Road.
That's when they found the victim with severe injuries.
“We believe she was attacked with a machete and concrete block,” said McNamara.
They then attempted to locate the suspect but were unable to find him right away.
“That caused an extensive manhunt for approximately 10 hours, involving the McLennan County Sheriff’s Office, the Waco Police Department, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas Game Wardens and also the Texas Department of Criminal Justice,” said McNamara.
And after ten hours of searching -
“That led to his capture, he was spotted hiding in a stock tank under the water,” said McNamara.
Officials say Brooker was transported to Baylor, Scott and White Medical Center in Temple where she died.
Ozment is in custody at the McLennan County Jail, facing charges of murder and a parole violation from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. His bond set at $1,000,000.
McNamara says it was the help of outside agencies that made the arrest possible.
“It was an incredible combined effort on the part of 5 different agencies to catch this guy,” said McNamara.
The investigation is ongoing and further details will be released as they become available.
A GoFundme for the victim can be found here.
