A suspect in a 14 year old cold case murder shockingly took his own life on camera while being interviewed by police.
Michael Wayne Thomas, 54, had been a person of interest since November 2, 2010, when 34 year old Julie Mitchell was found brutally murdered in her home. Julie was discovered with $30,000 missing from the safe in the wardrobe of her Oklahoma City home’s master bedroom.
Her body was tragically found next to her one year old daughter. At the time of the murder, Julie’s husband Teddy Mitchell, who was flying to California, was working with Thomas.
Despite his company chequebook being found at her home, he consistently denied any involvement in the murder during five or six interviews with police and the FBI. For undisclosed reasons, Oklahoma City Police arranged for Thomas to be interviewed again on Saturday.
Initially agreeing, he later opted for a video conference interview with his solicitor Ed Blau. “Beggars can’t always be choosers, and this is somebody we wanted to talk to, we needed to talk to. There were questions we needed to have answered by him,” said Master Sergeant Gary Knight, reports the Mirror US.
“He chose to pull out a pistol and shoot himself, ending his life.”
From the start of the call at 10 a. m., Thomas wouldn’t let the police speak, continuously discussing irrelevant topics.
“He didn’t give me an opportunity to ask him any questions. He controlled the conversation from start to finish,” Detective Bryn Carter divulged to KWTV-9. “At about 40 minutes through the interview, he produced a firearm and took his own life.
“In 31 years on the police department doing hundreds of hundreds of interviews, I’ve never had anyone commit suicide in front of me.”
The scene turned to shock and horror for the lawyer and detectives as they witnessed Thomas take his life, collapse, and his phone clattering to the floor.
“We heard the chilling sound of death – the death rattle – when the phone landed squarely on top of his head. It was simply harrowing and completely unexpected,” Blau shared with The Oklahoman.
Just moments before taking the tragic step, Thomas imparted words that suggested a deeper concern, “I really hope you solve the case,” and “I’m just worried about my daughter’s safety,” as noted by Blau. Yet, despite the dire outcome, the police have withheld details of the interview, accompanying officers’ records or what prompted Thomas’ questioning.
Blau only came across Thomas’ lifeless body posthumously, shrouded by the woods near Kansas Star Casino in Mulvane, adjacent to Witchita, Kansas.
Thomas, an insurance salesman at the time, and Mitchell, who was running illicit underground high-stakes poker games from their home, were both fond of gambling. The illegal sports betting operation they were involved in was exposed following Julie’s murder.
