TYLER, Texas — The trial for a Tatum man accused of killing a missing Tyler woman continued Wednesday morning.
The trial for Jesse Lee Williams, who is charged with murder for the death of Paula Belonga, 51, began Tuesday. He pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Williams was arrested after officials obtained evidence allegedly pointing to his involvement in Belonga’s disappearance last year. Belonga was last seen on April 7, 2023 leaving her apartment complex on Paluxy Drive in her Chevrolet Impala. According to an arrest affidavit, Belonga's brother told police on April 9, 2023, that she was supposed to pick up her son in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
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A Rusk County Sheriff's Office sergeant testified he responded to the report of a missing person's phone pinging on FM 1797 in the Tatum area at a trailer park. The sergeant said he saw Belonga's vehicle that law enforcement was looking for at a residence.
The sergeant contacted Debby Johnson, who had the vehicle on her property, and she told the sergeant her ex-boyfriend, Williams, was watching the vehicle for someone. Williams then told the sergeant on the phone that he just spoke with Belonga, and he gave the officer a phone number. However, no one ever answered the calls.
Johnson testified she knew Williams through a dating relationship that lasted about a year and half. They also lived together at one time. She said they often spoke about marriage.
She recalled winning $76,000 through the lottery, but that money was spent within a couple of months. She said both of them spent the money together. She testified that they would argue because she didn't have the money that he wanted to use.
Johnson testified she purchased two vehicles through the lottery winnings. In March 2023, the two argued over the truck that he purchased but the title was in her name because he wanted the title to the truck. She said the argument became physical.
He slapped the glasses off face and had his hand around her neck. He also struck her daughter as well. Johnson called 911 because of the argument and Williams ran into the woods with a gun, Johnson testified.
The state began playing the 911 call recording, which made Johnson emotional. The prosecution also showed images taken of Johnson and her daughter by law enforcement. She testified that they split up shortly after that incident.
Johnson testified she became aware of Belonga when Rusk County deputies came to her door saying the white car in her driveway was Belonga's, and she was missing. Williams told Johnson that he was watching the vehicle for a friend and he might purchase it.
Williams told Johnson that he would speak to detectives, but they were lying.
She testified Williams would call her often in an attempt to get back together and they were intimate but not back together for some time. After Williams was arrested for murder, she said she was scared and hurt.
Johnson told the defense that she believes that Williams is a pathological liar, someone who lies regardless of the situation. Williams was secretive with his phone and during their relationship, she learned that Williams was seeing another woman, Johnson testified.
Johnson's daughter Emily Johnson testified about the March 2023 argument that became physical, saying that she and her mother were both injured. She and her mom lived somewhere else for some time, but later returned to the Tatum mobile home with extra locks to keep Williams out.
Emily Johnson testified that she would often see other people pay for things for Williams, and she said that her mother was paying the bills at the home that her mom and Williams shared. She testified that Williams had jobs at an auto shop and Bodacious and he earned money while fishing and hunting.
She recalled one incident when Williams banged his hand on the door when he was angry during an argument with her mother.
Rusk County Sheriff's Office Deputy Manuel Aguilar testified he was one of the deputies who responded to the Tatum trailer park when Debby Johnson called the police in March 2023. Aguilar found several firearms at the residence and those were seized. Another deputy issued arrest warrants for Williams in connection with the reported assaults of Debby and Emily Johnson.