EULESS, Texas - A Tarrant County jury has sentenced a 27-year-old man to 99 years in prison after finding him guilty of murdering a 19-year-old Arlington man during what was supposed to be a cell phone sale.
Elijah Royal was convicted of murder in the February 2022 shooting death of LaMonte' Robert Watkins. Assistant Criminal District Attorneys Matt Hinojosa and Zachary Ashford prosecuted the case.
According to evidence presented at trial, Royal arranged to meet Watkins and Watkins' friend, Jaylon Reed, at approximately 5:37 p.m. on Feb. 10, 2022, in the parking lot of an apartment complex in the 600 block of East Ash Lane in Euless. The meeting was intended to complete the sale of a cellphone.
Prosecutors said Royal initially left the scene under the pretense of retrieving cash to purchase the phone. When he returned, he exited his vehicle, walked to Watkins' driver's side window and shot the 19-year-old once in the head.
Watkins was transported to a hospital in Grapevine in critical condition, where he died the following day from his injuries.
After the shooting, Royal fled the scene in his vehicle and later hid the murder weapon in Dallas, according to prosecutors.
An investigation by Euless police detectives identified Royal as the suspect. Investigators issued an alert, and Kaufman County sheriff's deputies later located and arrested him.
Watkins was a graduate of Sam Houston High School in Arlington.
Following the guilty verdict, the jury sentenced Royal to 99 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
