Arlington police make arrest in Thursday night homicide after standoff
Arlington police have a suspect in custody after a man was shot to death Thursday night in the city, police said.
Police said Justin Michael Milem, 38, shot a man in the 1700 block of West Sanford Street around 6:30 p.m. The victim died of his injuries at the hospital. The Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office identifed him as Michael Denton Henley, 50, of Arlington.
Milem was arrested after a standoff with officers and is being held at the Arlington Jail on suspicion of murder.
Detectives interviewed a witness at the scene who provided police with a license plate number of the car in which police said Milem fled the scene of the shooting. They used that license plate to find his residence in the 1900 block of Nueces Trail, police said.
Officers surrounded the residence, but Milem refused to surrender, police said. A SWAT team was called to the scene and, after a standoff with those officers, police said Milem surrendered himself around midnight.
Police said the two men had a fight at a Chevron gas station, located at 1606 W. Randol Mill Road, about a half mile from where the shooting happened.
They believe Milem followed the victim from the convenience store before shooting him and driving away, according to a news release.
Police said the exact motive is unknown at this time and the incident is still under investigation.
An arrest warrant affidavit for Milem says police received a call about a disturbance at the Chevron gas station around 6:13 p.m.
The affidavit says video obtained by police shows the victim fighting with a man who matched Milem’s description. A witness who was driving behind Milem’s vehicle saw the suspect pull over next to the victim and, as she drove around his vehicle, heard a gunshot. She looked back and saw the victim fall to the ground, according to the affidavit.
Police said in the affidavit they have video from a dash-mounted camera in the witness’ car. Two other witnesses who saw the shooting provided police with the license plate, according to the affidavit.
Police obtained a copy of Milem’s driver license photo and compared it to video of the fight and witness descriptions of the shooter to determine Milem as their suspect, according to the affidavit.
A negotiator for Arlington SWAT contacted the wife of Milem and confirmed the vehicle belonged to the couple and that they were the only two people who drive it, the affidavit said.
This story was originally published July 2, 2021 at 8:46 AM.