HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — Fifteen years after a woman was strangled to death, her accused killer is now behind bars and charged with murder, according to court documents.
Houston police said new evidence linked 54-year-old Earnest Smith to the crime and arrested him on Friday.
The district attorney’s office said the victim, 38-year-old Bridget Caldwell, and Smith were in an off-and-on-again dating relationship for five to six years.
Caldwell was found dead in her apartment, located on Dunvale near Richmond, on March 6, 2011, investigators said.
HPD said her dad went to check on her after she didn’t show up for work that morning.
According to court documents, Smith invited Caldwell to dinner March 6, 2011, but she declined.
The defendant told detectives at the time, that wasn’t true.
Documents show Smith did admit they were in a relationship but said they broke up two years prior.
Documents also reveal Caldwell made outcries of domestic violence and stalking and expressed to others that Smith would kill her if they broke up.
Smith also denied the domestic violence, court records show.
Detectives said they also learned she told three people that Smith held a gun to her head and threatened to kill her.
According to officers, Smith was identified as a person of interest then, but it wasn’t until cold case investigators secured new evidence tying him to the case. Right now, police have not said what that evidence is.
On March 6, documents show Smith was accused of applying pressure to Caldwell’s neck.
Smith did appear in court Monday for his arraignment hearing. The judge set his bond at $100,000.
His court appointed public defender said he had no comment.
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