Arlington suspect in 2020 murder arrested, posed as woman to lure victim, police said

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29-year-old Mekel Gaston (Source: Tarrant County Jail)

ARLINGTON, Texas - The Arlington Police Department has made an arrest in connection to the April 2020 murder of 31-year-old Eugene Johnson, who was shot and killed during a robbery attempt at an apartment complex in the 800 block of N. Oak Street.

Investigators say earlier this year, detectives found a key witness who had not previously talked with detectives. The witness gave them information linking 29-year-old Mekel Gaston to previous armed robberies and the deadly shooting of Johnson in 2020. 

Deadly 2020 Shooting

The backstory:

On April 28, 2020, at approximately 4:56 a.m., officers responded to the apartment complex after a resident reported seeing a man lying unresponsive in the parking lot. When officers arrived, they found the man, who was later identified as Eugene Johnson, had been shot. He died at the scene. 

The investigation revealed Johnson came to the apartment complex thinking he was going to be meeting a female he was texting with. Instead, an armed man approached him, pointed a gun at him, and demanded money, Arlington police say. Investigators believe the two men fought and the suspect shot Johnson. 

Detectives also learned there had been multiple armed robberies with very similar circumstances reported at the same apartment complex, leading them to believe they were connected. 

2025 Investigation

The information from the new witness allowed investigators to compare video footage from the shooting to a separate incident that Gaston was confirmed to be involved in. 

Detectives believe Gaston posed as a woman online to lure Johnson to the scene with the intent of robbing him.

On Friday, May 16, the U.S. Marshals North Texas Fugitive Task Force found Gaston in Arlington and took him into custody without incident. He was arrested and is now booked into the Tarrant County Jail. He is facing a charge of capital murder.

He is being held on a $1 million bond for capital murder and a $1,500 bond for assault causing bodily injury family violence.

What they're saying:

"Thanks to the outstanding efforts of our detectives, a dangerous and violent criminal is off our streets," said Chief of Police Al Jones. "This was a situation where good police work was done during the initial investigation, but detectives needed that last bit of additional evidence to file charges. I’m extremely proud of them for continuing to pursue leads until they got the information they needed."