25-year-old Tristan Bohannon, a father of two with two young children under the age of three, was killed at a park in Chickasaw, Alabama in October of 2022. The police identified two suspects, but both went on the lam. The first to be arrested, Joseph Timmons, was captured in December of 2022 and the second suspect, Trevion Smiley-Collins, was just arrested in late May of 2023 after months on the run.
Timmons, 19, was charged with murder and two counts of first-degree robbery. Smiley-Collins, 18, was also charged with murder and two counts of first-degree robbery for Bohannon’s killing.
According to the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, Bohannon was murdered in broad daylight by Timmons and Smiley-Collins as his children played just nearby. Both of the arrested men are accused of robbing a second person as well, though that person was not killed.
Timmons was caught because he led police on a chase after they attempted to pull him over for a traffic violation. Once caught and arrested, police realized who he was and charged him with the murder and robbery charges.
According to a release from the Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, Smiley-Collins was arrested when an anonymous source contacted the office and gave detectives information about his location and the type of vehicle he was using to get around. That gave them enough information to find and arrest him. When found, Smiley-Collins had both a stolen handgun and 7 grams of crack cocaine on his person, according to Mobile County Sheriff’s Office release.
Grace Nichols, Bohannon’s girlfriend of seven years and mother of his children, said when he was found dead, “I thought maybe it was a joke, even though that would be a really sick joke.” Continuing, she added, “I didn’t want to believe I had lost my partner and my child’s father.”
She also described the man whose life was allegedly snuffed out so early by the two thugs, saying, “It’s hard to know that he’s not here anymore, knowing he’s not going to watch his babies grow up. There was never a dull moment around him, ever, he always made everyone smile. He loved and cared for everybody more than he cared for himself.”
Nichols then pledged to take care of his kids and make sure they remember him as they grow up, saying, “I love him with my whole heart, and me and his son’s mother, Angel, we’re going to take care of the babies for him, and make sure they know how amazing of a dad he was and how much he loved and cared about them.”
Nichols also said, speaking to FOX 10 after Smiley-Collins was caught, “I’m relieved that they caught both of the suspects.” She added that she hopes the arrests will lead to closure, saying, “Whenever her and his son are old enough to question it, I want us to be able to give them solid answers.”
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