Inset: Onindas Romelus (Fayette County Sheriff’s Office). Background: A Texas gas station that Oninda Romelus allegedly went to after shooting her four kids (KHOU/YouTube).
A Texas mother accused of gunning down her four children, killing two of them, reportedly has another teenage child who is unaccounted for.
The Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at Oninda Romelus’ home after she showed up to a gas station with four of her five kids — ages 3, 8, 9, and 13 — all suffering from gunshot wounds. Her oldest child, a 17-year-old boy, was not in the car with them and it remained unclear where he was as of Tuesday evening, according to local Fox and NBC affiliates KRIV and KPRC, respectively.
The search warrant, which was obtained by the outlets, describes how deputies broke down the family’s door and went inside to try and find the teen, to no avail.
What they did find was mounds of alleged evidence related to fraud that Romelus was possibly committing, per cops.
The evidence haul included 33 social security cards, 48 identification cards, 16 credit cards, 2 treasury checks in envelopes, 15 packages of wrapped blank checks, 2 unwrapped stacks of blank checks, and other items that prompted a suspicion of criminal activity, KPRC reports.
Police say in the warrant that the social security cards and treasury checks were sent to Romelus’ address, but they had other people’s names on them. Shipping labels, phones, computers, laptops, printers and other electronic devices used “in the course of creating fraudulent pieces of identifying information” were allegedly found in an office, KPRC reports.
The sheriff’s office did not respond to requests for comment by Law&Crime on Wednesday about the items and missing child.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
Romelus, 31, is charged with two counts of murder and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for the Saturday shooting, which unfolded in Brazoria County sometime before 4:45 a.m., according to court documents obtained by Law&Crime. She allegedly told police that “instead of them doing it to me, I’m gonna do it to them,” in reference to murdering the kids, and claimed they’re with “the devil” now.
Police say the Montgomery County mother called 911 and asked authorities to meet her at a gas station in Angleton. Her children were in the vehicle when authorities arrived. Deputies responded to find that Romelus had allegedly killed the youngest and the oldest, while the two middle children survived.
According to the criminal complaint, Romelus was in a white passenger car with the engine running and “all of the doors opened,” per the deputy.
“[The cop] observed the body was positioned with its body hanging halfway out of the front passenger door, with legs in the vehicle and the upper torso and head on the ground,” the complaint says of one of the victims.
Surveillance footage allegedly shows Romelus pulling into the gas station and pumping gas, with police saying she purchased $56 worth of fuel.
“Romelus was talking on her phone as she can be seen getting fuel,” the complaint says. “She is observed walking around to the driver’s side of the vehicle, where she peers into the rear window before sitting back in the driver’s seat of the vehicle.”
Once cops arrived, they saw what was allegedly going on and jumped into action, performing lifesaving measures on the children, according to the complaint. “Two of the four children showed no signs of life, and the other two children were life-flighted to Memorial Hermann Hospital Downtown,” the document says.
After receiving her Miranda rights, Romelus began speaking with police while appearing “paranoid about her surroundings.” She was asked why she called 911 and initially stated that she “couldn’t talk about it” before allegedly confessing.
“Instead of them doing it to me, I’m gonna do it to them,” Romelus said, according to the complaint.
“Do what?” a deputy asked.
“Kill them all,” Romelus allegedly replied.
