© 2024 88.9 KETR
Public Radio for Northeast Texas
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Herald-Banner: Alicia Moore's uncle arrested

Greenville Herald-Banner

The Greenville Herald-Banner reports that the uncle of murdered Greenville teenager Alicia Moore has been arrested.

The uncle of Alicia Moore has been arrested and charged with capital murder, six months after the Greenville teenager disappeared a short distance from her home.

A press conference is planned at the Greenville Police Department today involving the arrest of Michael Vincent Moore.

Michael Moore, 57, was taken into custody at a Grand Prairie residence at around 9 p.m. Monday, by officers with the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office, the Greenville Police Department and the Texas Rangers. Michael Moore was charged with one count of capital murder on an arrest warrant from Van Zandt County and was transported to the Van Zandt County Jail in Canton, where he was being held Tuesday in lieu of $10 million bond.

Jessica Byrd, the aunt of Alicia Moore who has been the spokesperson for the family, declined comment concerning the arrest but posted on her Facebook page that the family was in shock and asking for prayers.

The Greenville Police Department issued a brief statement, giving the initial details of Michael Moore’s arrest, and referring calls to the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office. Officials with the agency issued a photo of Michael Moore being booked into the jail and indicated a press release would be issued during Tuesday afternoon.

However, no release was issued and Van Zandt County Sheriff M. L. Ray was unavailable for comment about the case Tuesday.

Moore, 16, was last seen getting off of a school bus at the intersection of Walnut and Bourland Streets in Greenville on Nov. 2, 2012.  Her body was found on Nov. 6, 2012 along FM 47 in Van Zandt County.

Investigators took DNA samples from Moore’s family members, which Greenville Police Chief Daniel J. Busken said was part of the overall investigative process.

Greenville Independent School District Superintendent Don Jefferies issued a statement which said the district had been informed about the arrest Tuesday morning.

“Needless to say, we are relieved that they have arrested a suspect,” Jefferies said. “We will continue to work with the GPD in any way we can until there is closure in this case.”

A reward fund of up to $25,000 had been offered for information in the case, through $5,000 contributions each from Hunt County Crime Stoppers, the Hunt County and Van Zandt County District Attorney’s Offices, the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office and Xerox, where Moore’s mother, Aretha Moore is employed. The status of the reward was unknown as of Tuesday evening.

Last Thursday, Alicia Moore’s friends and family members gathered to remember her on the six-month anniversary of the day she disappeared, as they again asked for the public’s help in finding the killer.

A local man, charged with allegedly sexually assaulting Alicia Moore prior to her disappearance, was found incompetent to stand trial.

The attorney for Terry Dwayne Ramsire was seeking to suppress statements Ramsire allegedly made to law enforcement officials last year due to questions over Ramsire’s mental competency. During a March 14 hearing  in the 354th District Court, Judge Richard A Beacom  issued an agreed judgment as to Ramsire’s incompetency and ordered him committed to a mental health facility, “for future examination and treatment toward specific objective of the Defendant attaining competency to stand trial.”

The judgment indicated that neither the prosecution nor the defense had sought a trial to determine competency and did not oppose the ruling.

Beacom ordered a mental examination for Ramsire in January.

Ramsire, 50, received two indictments from the Hunt County grand jury in September 2012; one for aggravated sexual assault of a child and another for indecency with a child by sexual contact, alleging he sexually assaulted Alicia Moore on multiple occasions during July 2012. Ramsire had pleaded not guilty. Ramsire was arrested on the charges on Aug. 23, 2012 and had remained in custody at the Hunt County Jail since that time.