{"id":221946,"date":"2026-03-26T20:14:12","date_gmt":"2026-03-26T20:14:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/221946\/"},"modified":"2026-03-26T20:14:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T20:14:12","slug":"crucial-tip-dna-link-leads-to-capital-murder-arrest-in-1990-texas-lovers-lane-cold-case-that-shook-houston","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/221946\/","title":{"rendered":"Crucial tip, DNA link leads to capital murder arrest in 1990 Texas \u2018Lovers\u2019 Lane\u2019 cold case that shook Houston"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">HOUSTON \u2013 A double murder case that went cold for 36 years has finally resulted in an arrest.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Houston police and the Harris County District Attorney\u2019s Office announced Thursday that, thanks to a tip in the cold case file and DNA evidence, an arrest has been made, according to court records.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">HPD and the FBI arrested Floyd William Parrott, 64, in Lincoln, Nebraska, on Wednesday. He\u2019s accused of the brutal killings of Cheryl Henry, 22, and Andy Atkinson, 21, in 1990 in west Houston.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">OUR FIRST REPORT: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.click2houston.com\/news\/local\/2026\/03\/26\/capital-murder-charge-filed-in-1990-lovers-lane-cold-case-nearly-36-years-later\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Capital murder charge filed in 1990 \u2018Lovers\u2019 Lane\u2019 cold case nearly 36 years later<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Henry and Atkinson had been dating. On the night before the murders, Aug. 22, 1990, Henry had been out drinking with her sister and Atkinson. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Her sister left, and Henry did not show up for work the next day. Concerned, her family filed a missing person report with HPD.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">On Aug. 23, a security guard conducting a routine patrol near the 1300 block of Enclave Parkway spotted a white Honda Civic parked at the end of a cul-de-sac. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">The car had not moved for several hours. The guard noticed a purse on the passenger-side floorboard containing Henry\u2019s ID.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">HPD officers responded and, in a nearby wooded area, discovered Henry\u2019s body underneath wooden boards, \u201cin what appeared to be an attempt to cover the body,\u201d according to court records. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Nearly 200 yards away, officers found Atkinson\u2019s body, which appeared to be sitting on the ground, propped against a tree. He had been tied to the tree.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Inside the vehicle, officers reported that the driver\u2019s seat was fully reclined, the rubber floor mat was pushed out of position, and there was blood on the inside of the driver\u2019s door near the handle. The key was still in the ignition.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Autopsies revealed that both victims were killed by sharp force injuries to the neck, possibly from a knife, according to records.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Investigators believe Parrott tied up and murdered Atkinson by cutting his throat. Then, they believe he tied up Henry, removed her underwear, left blood behind in the vehicle, raped her, and murdered her by cutting her throat as well, court records said.<\/p>\n<p>The tip that cracked the case<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Investigators received a tip identifying Parrott as a possible suspect. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">While the exact timing of the tip is unclear, a homicide sergeant began investigating it in late 2025. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Using the name from the tip, the officer discovered a 1996 police report about a sexual assault in which Parrott was identified as the suspect, though he claimed the encounter was consensual.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">The DNA from the 1996 case was recently added to the national DNA database CODIS, which matches DNA across local, state, and federal labs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">\u201cThere was a CODIS case-to-case match between the male profile in the 1996 case, where the defendant was the accused and admitted to the sexual contact, and the DNA recovered from swabs recovered in Cheryl Henry\u2019s sexual assault examination at her autopsy,\u201d investigators wrote in court records.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Another sexual assault case from June 1990 also produced a DNA match to Parrott, although he was unknown to that victim at the time, records show.<\/p>\n<p>Defendant\u2019s criminal history<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">In May of 1988, Parrott was arrested and later put on probation for impersonating a peace officer in Harris County. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">At that time, he provided a work address just over one mile from the \u201cLover\u2019s Lane\u201d murder scene. Early 1990s reports describe the area as remote and largely undeveloped.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">In December 1988, Parrott was arrested for carrying a weapon, resulting in a conviction. The weapon\u2014a blue steel revolver\u2014was later returned to him, records show. <\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Investigators say this revolver matches the description given by the June 1990 sexual assault victim.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Then in May 1990, Parrott got arrested for impersonating a peace officer again, then released on bond when the June 1990 sexual assault happened\u2014before the August 1990 murders of Henry and Atkinson.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">At that time, Parrott was 28.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">It is unclear when or if Parrott permanently moved to Nebraska, though public records indicate he owned property in New Caney until 2020.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">When arrested Wednesday in Lincoln, Parrott allegedly told police he had never met Henry. He is currently in custody awaiting extradition to the Harris County Jail.<\/p>\n<p>Breaking News Alerts<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 kiwhtN\">More Stories Like This In Our Email Newsletter<\/p>\n<p>Copyright 2026 by KPRC Click2Houston &#8211; All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HOUSTON \u2013 A double murder case that went cold for 36 years has finally resulted in an arrest.&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":221947,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[2539,294,86381,405,56,58,57,2543,5171,100,86380,636,223,95],"class_list":["post-221946","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-houston","tag-cold-case","tag-crime","tag-floyd-william-parrott","tag-harris-county","tag-houston","tag-houston-headlines","tag-houston-news","tag-houston-police-department","tag-hpd","tag-investigation","tag-lovers-lane","tag-murder","tag-news","tag-shooting"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221946","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=221946"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/221946\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/221947"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=221946"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=221946"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=221946"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}