TYLER, Texas — Jurors found a Tatum man guilty of killing a missing Tyler woman in 2023 just about 20 minutes after starting to deliberate Thursday morning.
Jesse Lee Williams was convicted of murdering Paula Belonga, 51, who was last seen on April 7, 2023 leaving her apartment complex on Paluxy Drive in her Chevrolet Impala. He pleaded not guilty to the charge last week.
Following closing arguments Thursday morning, the jury went to deliberate for a verdict around 10:45 a.m. and they returned with a verdict around 11:05 a.m. Prior to Thursday, jurors heard testimony and evidence over seven days.
Judge Austin Reeve Jackson of the 114th District Court said sentencing will start soon after the verdict.
SENTENCING PHASE
Travis Brazil with the Smith County Sheriff's Office took the stand to go over multiple instances of Williams' arrests and convictions, including failing to identify himself, assault, theft, unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, burglary and criminal mischief. The convictions happened not just in Texas, but Louisiana as well.
The jury was then dismissed for lunch and will return at 1 p.m. The state anticipates resting immediately after lunch.
CLOSING ARGUMENTS BEFORE VERDICT
In closing arguments, the state told the jury that Williams made a living off women who he befriended and was in relationships with, pointing to spending the lottery winnings of his ex-girlfriend and over time taking $7,100 in CashApp payments from another woman.
The prosecutor noted the Google searches, including body decomposition in hot weather, missing woman in Tyler, body found Rusk County and others. She also noted how Williams downloaded the app used to make investigators think it was Belonga, but it was coming from his phone.
The state noted the testimony about Williams' hog hunting trips around the time that Belonga was last seen and remained missing. The lawyer said that hogs will eat anything, which Williams had said and was mentioned during testimony from those who hunted with him.
In police interviews, Williams made an effort to distance himself from Belonga as much as possible. He initially described her as a close friend, but later on, he claimed to not care where she was.
The prosecutor said investigators don't know what weapon was used but Williams does have access to weapons. The location of her body is also unknown and why it would've been Belonga to be killed is also not known.
"From all this evidence, we know that Jesse killed Paula," the state said.
The prosecution said the evidence shows that beyond reasonable doubt he killed her.
"This family has been through enough. We can't bring Paula back," the lawyer said. "But what we do for Paula's family is bring them some justice."
Williams' defense attorney Mishae Boren said the evidence provided is not enough to overcome the presumption of innocence.
Boren said the search history regarding a body found and decomposition could very well connect to a news article on April 6, 2023 about two people arrested after a body was found in Rusk County.
The apartment complex video showed Belonga leave her apartment building and get into her car alone. It didn't appear that Williams got into the car with her and was traveling with Belonga as investigators said phone data suggested.
His stories weren't all the same, Boren said. But she said that could've had to do with the fact that he was texting with five women at the time or perhaps that he didn't want his ex-girlfriend, who he was trying to get back with, to know.
Williams' semen was found on a sheet in Belonga's apartment, but there were other stains found in her apartment that law enforcement did not test, Boren said. She added that's what she meant by an incomplete investigation by police.
Boren pointed out how there was a large pot with water in Belonga's apartment, and she questioned why Williams would take care of her dog after killing Belonga.
Law enforcement searching the Rusk County service road area, where they believed Belonga's body could be, did not record video of the scene. But four days later, during a volunteer search found a necklace that they believed to be Belonga's.
Boren implored the jury to see that the necklace found in Rusk County was gold and it'll always be gold. Belonga's necklace was silver.
She told the jury what they heard was a lot of character evidence, showing that maybe Williams is a liar and moocher. But she said all those qualities don't make him a murderer and he has the right to a fair trial.
"The law says if you have a reasonable doubt ... you must acquit," Boren said. "And that's what I'm going to ask you."
His other attorney Kurt Noell simulated asking the virtual assistant Siri questions about the case as a way to show a lack of information in the investigation, such as no blood, no body, a motive, and when and where the death happened. After a series of questions, Siri said she could not answer the question of "did Williams kill Belonga?"
Noell pointed to there being no photos or videos of the Rusk County service road, where law enforcement presumed her body could be. A search of her apartment did not yield evidence that would implicate Williams.
No DNA was even maintained or results didn't come back until this year, Noell said. From the first time he spoke to police, Williams told them he was helping her leave the area. The lawyer said that a person wanting to go missing would not get rid of their phone first.
Police did not check into the information that Williams gave about Belonga's alleged boyfriend Cory Smith who he claimed Belonga ran off with. Investigators also didn't check into the tip saying Belonga was seen in Sulphur, Louisiana, Noell said.
There was another phone number with that app that disguises the source of a text message or call, and law enforcement didn't ask about it, Noell said.
Williams was arrested and indicted on probable cause that he might have killed Belonga, but the jury has to find that Williams killed Belonga beyond a reasonable doubt, Noell emphasized to the jury.
Smith County Assistant District Attorney Emil Mikkelsen said the Siri bit was cute, but it's not skit night at a kids summer camp, it's a murder trial.
Firstly, Mikkelsen sought to correct what the defense said about the necklace. He said the jewelry found in Rusk County was silver just like the necklace that Belonga was wearing in photos.
Mikkelsen went over what could be a perfect murder in this case, including:
- No witnesses
- Leaving no trace - no DNA, no items and no cell phone location data
- Creating an alibi
- No body
He told the jury that Williams committed the perfect murder; however, despite there being no body or witnesses, he did leave traces of evidence, such as items and phone data.
Williams met Belonga on Facebook dating -- just like how he met other women who testified in court, saying that he took money from them.
"He is a grifter and a mooch, scamming women out of money," Mikkelsen said.
He normally always returns to his home base in Tatum, but on March 31, 2023, he assaulted his ex-girlfriend and her daughter, fled the scene with a gun and he needed help. Mikkelsen said he reached out to Belonga for help and she picked him up.
Days after that, he began Google searching topics indicative of killing someone, trying to hide their body and taking their money. Williams wanted to know how to silence a gun, about body decompositions and how much money can be added to his CashApp, Mikkelsen said.
Williams was actively stealing from Belonga's bank account, citing an attempted $3,000 transfer from Belonga's account to Williams' CashApp. It didn't work because she doesn't have that much money, Mikkelsen said.
Phone data showed Belonga and Williams were in the Rusk County service road area for enough time for her body to be dumped out there and then Williams to leave the scene quickly, Mikkelsen said. He then theorized that her body was then eaten by wild hogs.
Williams drove around different parts of Rusk County on April 7, 2023, to disguise where he traveled, and he went to Martin Lake to go hunting because he needed an alibi. After that entire night, he texted his ex-girlfriend for sex, Mikkelsen said.
Mikkelsen then argued that Williams could have come into Belonga's apartment to stage the area and hide certain things like the bed sheets found in a trash bag in her closet.
The state said what is most important about the Google searches is the timing:
- Body found in Rusk County, Henderson Daily News and Rusk County breaking news on April 9, 2023
- How to unlock an iPhone passcode without a computer and I forgot my iPhone passcode around 3 to 4 a.m. April 10, 2023
- Body found in Henderson Texas today on April 11, 2023
Writing from the text messaging app shows that it was Williams texting with law enforcement pretending to be Belonga, Mikkelsen said.
Belonga is not someone who snorts coke and is associated with the Mexican cartels. She is a mom, sister and grandmother, Mikkelsen said.
"Anything else but guilty puts Jesse Williams back on the streets," Mikkelsen said.
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