After over three years of investigation, a man was apprehended in connection with a 2021 homicide in South Austin. Mithovar Christopher Antoine Jr., now 22, was taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals-led Lone Star Fugitive Task Force earlier this week, the task force announced.
The arrest took place in Temple, a city located roughly 70 miles north of Austin, KVUE reports. Antoine is accused of fatally stabbing 23-year-old Nikolas Martinez, in an incident that occurred on the 2000 block of South Interstate 35 in July 2021. Upon receiving Martinez's call for help, first responders found him lying in front of a convenience store on Mariposa Drive, close to the interstate, where he succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene.
According to information from the KXAN, investigators continued their pursuit over the years, resulting in the issuance of a warrant for Antoine's arrest on September 11. Antoine, who the task force indicated was known to reside in Temple, has been booked into the Bell County Jail. He will await further judicial proceedings and eventual extradition back to Travis County.
Following Martinez's death, his family offered an $8,000 reward in hopes of advancing the capture of the person responsible for his death. Martinez’s case marked the 48th homicide in Austin for the year 2021, reflecting the grave tenure of that period, Antoine now faces the grave repercussions of that fateful day more than three years prior.
