The 19-year-old son of a Houston pastor is in custody in Mississippi and charged with killing his parents and 5-year-old brother.
Two counts of capital murder have been filed against Isaac Tiharihondi, according to the Houston Police Department.
Investigators believe Tiharihondi killed his family at their apartment in the 870 block of Strey Lane, not far from Memorial City Mall. Court documents show Tiharihondi used a lamp, baseball bat and a hammer to kill his parents and he stabbed his little brother with a kitchen knife.
HPD identified the victims as Israel Ahimbisibwe, 51, Dorcus Ahimbisibwe, 47, and Israel Ahimbisibwe, Jr., 5.
A maintenance man found their bodies on Monday, Feb. 2 in a back bathroom. They were covered with blankets and towels. There were no signs of forced entry.
“It’s devastating. It’s sad. It’s unexplainable,” said Nancy Taylor, who attends Church of the Redeemer Episcopal where Ahimbisibwe was pastor.
Family and friends told investigators they hadn’t seen or heard from the family since Tuesday, Jan. 25.
Taylor said she had lunch with the suspect on Wednesday, Jan. 26 after he allegedly killed his family. She said he showed no signs that anything was wrong.
“We had lunch, we sat, we chatted, we talked, we laughed,” said Nancy Taylor. “It was just a real enjoyable experience and time together.”
Taylor described Tiharihondi as a “nice kid.”
“Good kid, polite, nice, respectful, grateful,” Taylor said.
Taylor believes Tiharihondi might have faked a phone call to his mother during the lunch, according to court documents.
FBI agents and HPD detectives later tracked Tiharihondi to New Orleans, then Jackson Mississippi. He was arrested early Wednesday morning. Tiharihondi is expected to be brought back to Houston later this week.
Prior to the murders, the 19-year-old suspect told his family and friends that he was due to enter the U.S. Marine Corps at the end of January. But military officials told police they have no record of his admittance.
The suspect’s 17-year-old brother, who attends school in California, told police that his mother planned to confront Tiharihondi because she suspected he was lying about the Marines.
