MIDLAND COUNTY, Texas —
An Arkansas man was sentenced by a jury to 60 years in prison on Tuesday in relation to a 2018 murder, according to the Midland County District Attorney's Office.
Willie Otey Henderson, 33, was sentenced for murder, tampering with evidence and tampering with a corpse.
According to the D.A.’s office, on October 19, 2018, Henderson and others went to the apartment of his neighbor, Michael Joel Rubio, and shot him in the abdomen, causing him to be instantly paralyzed from the waist down.
Henderson then ransacked the apartment, and on his way out took the victim’s phones and keys and locked the door preventing the discovery of the body until Sunday afternoon.
Henderson also moved the victim’s truck to another apartment complex two blocks away and threw the victim’s phones in a roadside ditch.
The victim’s brothers discovered the body and notified the police. Investigation then revealed Henderson’s DNA on the victim’s phones where he removed the SIM cards, the victim’s blood on Henderson’s shoe and shoe prints from Henderson’s shoes beside the victim’s body.
Due to a prior conviction for sexual assault and aggravated assault out of Arkansas, Henderson faced an enhanced punishment range of 15 years to 99 years or life in prison for murder, 2 years to 20 years in prison for tampering with evidence and 5 years to 99 years or life in prison for tampering with a corpse.
This is all the information we currently have on the sentencing. We will update this story if more details become available.