PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A Philadelphia man accused of stabbing and butchering a transgender woman, and dumping her body in and along the Schuylkill River, will head to trial. At a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, the judge expressed shock at the brutality of the allegations.
Last summer, Dominique Rem’mie Fells, who was 27, was stabbed 40 times throughout the head and body. Her torso was found in the river two days later, and her legs were nearby, wrapped in green plastic and tossed in a trash bag.
Prosecutors believe the killing happened on June 6, 2020, and that it was at the hands of Akhenaton Jones, 37.
They called a witness who was in Jones’ apartment on Powelton Avenue. He said he hung out with the pair, before Jones asked for private time with Fells.
The witness said he went upstairs to another apartment to wait for his friend. After about 40 minutes, he came back downstairs when he smelled natural gas coming from Jones’ apartment.
When he went back in, he said he saw the bedroom wall splattered with blood, all the stovetop knobs turned up, and Jones talking angrily on the phone while emptying a gun clip. The man said he ran out, terrified.
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Prosecutor Chesley Lightsey said the victim’s DNA was on a knife and an angle saw found in Jones’ apartment, and Jones' DNA was on the knife and a white hazmat suit found covered in blood.
Prosecutors also said they found green wrapping in the apartment, like the material used to wrap Fells’ legs.
"We also believe her legs were cut from her torso after the fact," said Lightsey.
"We don’t believe that was something happening the night of [the homicide]. It was more this defendant's attempt to dispose of the body so that it wouldn’t be found."
Judge James DeLeon held Jones on all charges, which include murder, abuse of corpse and tampering with evidence. Jones is next due in court on Aug. 10.
After seeing the grisly pictures, DeLeon quietly remarked, “that poor girl.”
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