A man charged in the slaying of a 68-year-old woman in her Henderson home was connected to the crime via DNA evidence and Amazon packages delivered to the woman’s residence, police said.
Markus Williams, 37, was taken into custody Saturday and booked at the Henderson Detention Center on a charge of open murder in the killing of Yong Temple. She was found dead in a closet of her home in the 1800 block of Indian Bend Drive, near Wigwam Parkway and North Valle Verde Drive, in January 2022.
Temple died from blunt force trauma to the head and neck, resulting in asphyxia.
A Henderson Police Department arrest report for Williams shows he was a suspect from very early on in the case.
Police said Williams was found sleeping in the backyard of a home near the crime scene two days after the killing. At the time, he was in possession of Amazon delivery packages that had been routed to Temple’s house. He was also in possession of Temple’s home and vehicle keys, police said.
Williams claimed at the time he found the items on a nearby golf course, according to the report.
Williams was arrested and charged at the time with possessing stolen property and other charges, but he was not charged in Temple’s death. Henderson Justice Court records show Williams pleaded no contest to trespassing and possession of stolen property in 2022. He was ordered to complete a petit larceny class and stay out of trouble. He completed the requirements, and the case was closed.
Police said they subsequently conducted exhaustive DNA testing that linked Williams to the crime scene. After his arrest in Temple’s death, police said he continued to deny killing the woman or ever being at her house.
A preliminary hearing in the case is scheduled for June 29.
Williams is now being held without bail at the Clark County Detention Center.
Contact Glenn Puit at gpuit@reviewjournal.com.
