Cougar news services
After a weeks-long search, a University of Houston junior communication major was found dead Monday, having suffered severe head injuries.
Stacey Leon Ellis, 29, had missed work for the past two weeks, according to HPD Homicide Division Sgt. T.M. Ladd and Officer R.F. Huseman. After several unanswered calls, Ellis' co-workers asked his apartment association to make a welfare check.
A neighbor found the student dead in his kitchen, nude and covered with a blanket and towels, investigators reported.
According to police, a suspect entered Ellis' apartment in the 2700 block of Briarhurst. Ellis and the suspect struggled in several rooms, where investigators reported they found blood.
The Houston Chronicle reported the word "rapist" was scrawled in blood on a Marilyn Monroe poster hanging on the wall.
HPD Public Information Officer Joe Gamino said investigators could not find Ellis' wallet or his red 1996 Chevrolet S-10 pickup with the Texas license plate number ST5 662.
Anyone with information can call Crime Stoppers at 222-TIPS or the HPD Homicide Division at 731-5800.