A man suspected in the sexual assault and murder of a Gwinnett County woman in downtown Atlanta may have committed other sex crimes and even killed before, according to a detective’s testimony in court Friday.
Ja’Kevious Arnold, 24, is accused of killing 25-year-old Mitchel Dang on Aug. 27 and abandoning her body in a downtown parking deck. At a preliminary hearing Friday afternoon, Arnold was bound over on nine charges, including murder, felony murder, aggravated sexual assault and necrophilia. He was denied bond and will remain in the Fulton County Jail at least until his next bond hearing is scheduled.
The hearing featured one witness, Atlanta police homicide detective Jarion Shepherd, who is the lead investigator on Dang’s case. Shepherd explained how Arnold was identified as a suspect from security camera footage taken from a variety of locations downtown, his MARTA Breeze card records and an interview with one of his family members.
From the witness stand, Shepherd said Arnold admitted to killing Dang in an interview after his arrest. The detective said he asked Arnold if he’d ever done anything like this before, “and he admitted to two other sexual assaults and a possible homicide,” Shepherd said.
Both alleged previous assaults took place in DeKalb County and followed the same pattern as the incident involving Dang, Shepherd said. That pattern involved finding a vulnerable woman late at night, physically dragging her to an isolated location and assaulting her, according to the detective.
Atlanta police are working with their DeKalb counterparts to determine if those cases can be identified, and Shepherd said he hoped Arnold’s arrest would allow other potential victims to come forward.
In Dang’s case, Shepherd presented a timeline of events from the hours around her death supported by video evidence. The courtroom was packed; at least 30 family members, friends and others showed up in support of Dang’s immediate family.
The footage started with an “outfit of the day”-style video recorded by Dang, which was provided to police by her sister, Mary, according to Shepherd. In the video, Mitchel describes in detail the black shirt and miniskirt she is wearing to go out that night. Shepherd said the video was crucial to the investigation because it allowed him to identify her in surveillance footage and track her movements.
“I’m really excited to see what the night holds,” Dang said as she smiled into the camera.
Credit: Courtesy/Family Photo
Credit: Courtesy/Family Photo
The video then moved into surveillance footage showing Dang driving into the parking deck at Underground Atlanta and walking to a nearby event space, Future Club, where there was a party called Alley Cat. After Dang entered the club, the video jumped forward and showed her leaving. Shepherd did not comment on Dang’s state as she left the club, and the autopsy report has not been completed, but she can be seen weaving as she walks.
The video showed Dang as she began walking toward the Five Points MARTA station, which Shepherd said was in the opposite direction of the parking deck where she’d left her car. When she next appeared in the frame, Dang was accompanied by Arnold. Shepherd said Arnold told him that Dang had stumbled near him and he’d asked if she needed help.
Multiple surveillance cameras captured Arnold and Dang as they walked back to the Underground Atlanta parking deck. They could be seen entering a stairwell together, but Arnold emerges about 20 minutes later by himself.
Dang’s body was discovered three days later when a security guard at the parking deck noticed a smell in the stairwell, Shepherd said. The guard found Dang’s nude body pushed underneath the stairwell at the bottom level, where it had decomposed enough to render her unrecognizable, according to Shepherd.
Shepherd said Dang still had on the necklaces and earrings she could be seen wearing in her outfit of the day video, and she was wearing an Alley Cat wristband.
After his arrest, Arnold admitted to choking Dang in the stairwell before sexually assaulting her, according to Shepherd.
Credit: Henri Hollis
Credit: Henri Hollis
Investigators were able to track Arnold on surveillance cameras as he left the scene and appeared to be carrying Dang’s clothing and other possessions in a clear backpack, Shepherd said. The detective said Arnold admitted to stripping the body in an attempt to dispose of evidence.
Arnold threw Dang’s phone in a trashcan by the parking deck and then threw away her clothing in a dumpster somewhere downtown, Shepherd said. He kept Dang’s wallet and allegedly used a credit card at a gas station near his home, according to the detective.
Shepherd said he met with Arnold’s grandmother, who positively identified him on all of the surveillance footage he showed her. Homicide detectives later arrested Arnold where he worked at the DeKalb animal shelter in Chamblee.
After the hearing, Dang’s family appeared shell-shocked. They did not take questions, but Mary said the family supported the court’s decision to uphold all nine charges against Arnold.
“We just want justice to be served in its fullest capacity for Mitchel,” Mary told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
After Judge Ashley Drake upheld the charges against Arnold, he seemed to become emotional. Draped in chains, with a surgical mask muffling his words, he appeared to cry, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” as he looked back at Dang’s supporters.
Arnold’s charges will be sent to a grand jury, where Fulton Deputy District Attorney Michael Sprinkle said he expects Arnold to be indicted on multiple additional charges.
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