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Defense attorney breaks down Marine vet’s motion for a mistrial in subway chokehold death
Staten Island lawyer Louis Gelormino, who represented two clients in a similar chokehold case last year, says Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg’s prosecutors are trying to paint Daniel Penny as a racist, even though their indictment doesn’t accuse him of racism.
An active-duty Marine was recently arrested after Google searches led Florida investigators to suspect he murdered a reality TV star and dumped her body in an Alabama pond.
Willie Ellington, 20, who was stationed onboard the Naval Air Station Pensacola, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with first-degree murder and possession of child pornography, according to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office.
Tshey Ronaie Bennett, 26, who was last seen meeting Ellington at the Sweet Dream Inn, was reported missing Saturday, according to the sheriff’s office.
Authorities identified Bennett as an “escort,” but did not elaborate on the purpose of the meet-up.
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U.S. Marine Willie Ellington is facing first-degree murder and possession of child pornography charges. (Lee County Sheriff’s Office Alabama)
Bennett appeared on the first season of HollyHoodTV’s series “Skrippa Bootcamp,” which premiered earlier this year, according to her Facebook biography.
The show centered around a dozen “aspiring and elite dancers” living together while working to perfect their craft, according to the show’s website.
Due to the “suspicious circumstances” surrounding her disappearance, investigators worked the case as a potential homicide, authorities said.
Tshey Ronaie Bennett was reported missing Saturday, and her body was found Wednesday. (Escambia County Sheriff’s Office)
Bennett’s car and phone remained at the inn, but the bedding was missing, according to a report from Military.com.
Her body was found Wednesday inside a pond in an abandoned neighborhood in Mobile, Alabama, according to the sheriff’s office.
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The report noted Ellington attempted to skip town via bus and had Google searches on his phone “pertaining to ‘can someone scream when they’re strangled? What is the statistic of prostitutes homicides being solved …’ and ‘How does a dead body look in two days?'”
The sheriff’s office has not publicly commented on Bennett’s cause of death, as of Thursday afternoon.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office for comment, but did not immediately receive a response.
The Pensacola Naval Air Station in Florida. (U.S. Navy)
The District One Medical Examiner’s Office has not released Bennett’s cause of death, as of Friday afternoon.
One of Bennett’s friends, Muranda Newson, posted to Facebook, noting Bennett was a mother.
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“I hate that I’m typing this,” Newson wrote in part. “I hate that handsome boy is hurting. I really really hate someone did this to you baby you didn’t deserve this at all.”
Fox News Digital reached out to HollyHood TV on Friday for comment.
Alexandra Koch is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital. Prior to joining Fox News, Alexandra covered breaking news, crime, religion, and the military in the southeast.