Thomas Johnson, a 21-year-old former wide receiver for Texas A&M, has admitted to the brutal machete attack that killed a jogger and was witnessed by a passing cyclist.
The cyclist, Brandon, said that he was riding his bike along the trail when he witnessed the attack.
“As I get closer and closer I could tell it was a machete and there are repeated blows that are occurring,” Brandon recalled. “As I get closer, I could see what’s being hit is a person, lying face down on the ground. It was apparent to me by the time I got close that there was nothing that could be done for the person.”
Brandon said that he saw six or seven blows being delivered before the killer then turned and shouted at him.
“I heard a little bit of a yell from behind,” Brandon said. “I assume it was the guy with the machete yelling to stop. I just kept going and I just kept going.”
Brandon was able to escape unscathed, and the police later apprehended Johnson.
The victim was not carrying identification at the time of the attack and has been identified only as a white male.
“It appears that Mr. Johnson picked this victim at random. It’s absolutely random. He just attacked him. He told our homicide detectives that he was angry about a situation and he just picked somebody to murder,” Dallas police Deputy Chief Rob Sherwin told KXAS-TV. “I believe there’s more to that story. t’s just very unusual. It’s quite shocking.”