Girlfriend of Balch Springs murder victim recalls random shooting that took his life
BALCH SPRINGS, Texas - New details are being released about a Christmas Day murder in Balch Springs involving a suspect linked to at least two other shootings in North Texas.
The victim's girlfriend spoke to FOX 4.
She witnessed the shooting in Balch Springs, and said she keeps playing it over and over in her head.
Francisco Manriquez and his girlfriend, Josselin Morales, posed for a photo at a Christmas Eve party.
"He was so nice," Morales said. "And I’m going to miss him so much."
The two had no idea it would be the last night they would spend together.
After the party, Morales was getting dropped off at her sister’s home in Balch Springs. That’s when the car the couple was in was sprayed with random gunfire.
Balch Springs shooting kills 1 on Christmas Day, police say
Balch Springs police are looking for the person responsible for a shooting that killed a man on Christmas morning.
"I couldn’t even look up at the time that they were shooting because everything was so fast. I was scared for my life," she recalled.
Manriquez was in the driver’s seat.
"I grabbed his face and he had two bullets on his head," she said.
After the gunfire stopped, Morales ran for help. A relative wanted to rush Manriquez to a hospital.
"But when he went to look at him, he was already gone — he was already gone," Morales recalled.
Francisco Manriquez
Balch Springs Police Department’s murder suspect is 45-year-old Corey Thompson, a convicted felon who bonded out on new charges in Dallas back in May for criminal mischief, assault, and terroristic threat.
On December 20, Dallas police said Thompson used a rifle to shoot and kill Roderick Butler off McKinney Avenue.
Friday night, Butler’s loved ones held a vigil at the scene of the deadly shooting in the Uptown neighborhood of Dallas.
Vigil held to remember Army veteran killed in Uptown Dallas shooting
A candlelight vigil will be held Friday night to remember the life of a 46-year-old man murdered in Uptown Dallas last week.
After Butler was murdered, Dallas police said the shooting was targeted and didn’t see a further threat to the community.
But while Thompson was on the run, he is accused of carrying out the random shooting in Balch Springs. Surveillance identified Thompson’s white Lincoln SUV near the scene, according to police.
Also, Rowlett PD is working to determine if Thompson is responsible for a shooting at the intersection of Rowlett Road and Miller Road the morning after the Balch Springs shooting.
"Why would somebody do that?" Morales asked.
The trauma is indescribable for Morales.
"I just don’t want to keep playing it all over and over and over again in my head. I’m tired of crying," she said.
Manriquez was a father to three girls — ages 11, 8, and 6. The 28-year-old did not graduate high school, but recently went back to earn a GED.
"He was a very loving person," Morales said.
The type of person Morales said she’s better for knowing.
"And it sucks that I’m never going to get to see him again, because he was my soulmate," she added.
Thompson is currently being held in Dallas County Jail without bond.