Murderer Billy Chemirmir – suspected of killing dozens of elderly women – is killed in prison by his cellmate
Murderer Billy Chemirmir – suspected of killing dozens of elderly women – is killed in prison by his cellmate
- Billy Chemirmir, 50, served two life sentences in a Texas prison for the murder conviction of two elderly women
- In addition to his convictions, he was indicted on another 20 counts of murdering nearly 20 victims
- Chemirmir was found dead in his cell early Tuesday morning. Authorities determined that his cellmate was the attacker
Convicted murderer Billy Chemirmir was killed Tuesday by a cellmate in a Texas prison.
Chemirmir, 50, was convicted last year of murdering two people but charged with the deaths of nearly 20 others. He received two life sentences without parole.
He was found dead in his cell early Tuesday morning. His cellmate, who is serving a sentence for murder, was identified as the attacker.
During multiple trials, prosecutors alleged that the suspected serial killer targeted people in their homes or senior living facilities. He often smothered his victims with pillows to steal jewelry.
Convicted murderer Billy Chemirmir, 50, was killed Tuesday by a cellmate in a Texas prison
Chemirmir was murdered in his cell at the Coffield Unit in Tennessee Colony, Texas. Officials have not released the killer’s cause of death
The families of Chemirmir’s victims were informed of his death on Tuesday.
It was initially believed that most of the killer’s victims had died of natural causes, despite family members claiming that the circumstances of their deaths were strange and that jewelry had been stolen.
Only when a victim survived an attack did police reopen the cases and charges were filed against Chemirmir.
He was eventually charged with murdering 22 North Texas women over a two-year period. He was found guilty of murder last October for the death of Mary Brooks, 87.
In April 2022, he was convicted of the murder of 81-year-old Lu Thi Harris on the same charge. His first trial over her death ended in a mistrial.
Officials did not say how Chemirmir was killed. He was killed at the Coffield Unit in Tennessee Colony, about two hours southeast of Dallas.
His lawyer, Phillip Hayes, confirmed the killer’s death in a statement: “Despite how you feel about him, no one deserves to be killed in prison.”
The Office of the Inspector General is investigating the murder.
Last month, the Collin County District Attorney’s Office opted not to pursue the death penalty in 11 of the pending cases against Chemirmir.
During multiple trials, prosecutors alleged that the suspected serial killer targeted people in their homes or senior living facilities. He often smothered his victims with pillows to steal jewelry
Defendant Billy Chemirmir listens to moves in his murder trial at the Frank Crowley Courts Building in Dallas, Friday, November 19, 2021
Authorities believe Chemirmir, who once worked as a caregiver for seniors, began his killing spree in April 2016.
He was accused of killing at least three women in Dallas’ upscale Edgemere community, and at least nine at The Tradition-Prestonwood, located in far north Dallas, according to court records.
He was ultimately arrested the day after an elderly woman, Mary Bartel, survived an attack at Plano’s Preston Place Retirement Community in March 2018 and went to report her missing jewelry.
During his trials, Chemirmir has maintained his innocence, repeatedly saying he was “not a murderer” and was “not at all what they say I am.”
‘I’m a very innocent person. I wasn’t raised that way. I grew up in a good family. I haven’t had any problems my whole life.’
A month before his April 2022 sentencing, he said he was “100% sure” he would not go to prison.