MUSKEGON COUNTY, Mich. — An arrest was made Tuesday evening in connection to the stabbing death of a pregnant mother.
Muskegon County Prosecutor D.J. Hilson says Christopher Howard, 19, is being charged with open murder for the death of Dominique LaShay Oneal in June 2015. He was arrested after police said they received new evidence last week that pointed to him.
Howard was 17 at the time of Oneal’s death. Hilson said he couldn’t comment on any sort of relationship the two may have had.
Oneal was 21, and a mother of two. She was also in the Army and had become a certified nursing assistant shortly before her death.
She was about six months pregnant when she was found dead in her home at the Quail Meadows Apartment Complex. Police say her children were sleeping inside at the time. Her boyfriend – Jamari Williams – called police to report her death.
After Oneal’s death, Williams was initially considered a person of interest in the case, but the prosecutor says he’s since been cleared of the murder. However, he was charged and convicted of lying to police during the investigation about where he was at the time of Oneal’s murder and how many people were with him at the time. Police say none of those people with Williams were the suspect.
In December, Williams tried to appeal his conviction regarding the false information to police, but was denied. He’s scheduled for sentencing later this month.
Prosecutor Hilson said it’s possible Howard could be charged for the death of Oneal’s unborn child in the future.
Howard will likely be arraigned Thursday.
