Everman deputy fire chief used hookup app to solicit woman's rape, report says

EVERMAN, Texas - Newly released court documents reveal why police arrested Everman’s deputy fire chief. 

Joel Jones is accused of using a hookup app to find a man willing to sexually assault a woman known to him.

Everman deputy fire chief arrested

The backstory:

In March, Fort Worth police arrested 53-year-old Joel Jones and 30-year-old Tobasia Griffiths. 

Both men were charged with aggravated sexual assault. Jones was also charged with criminal solicitiation of a felony for aggravated sexual assault and aggravated kidnapping.

At the time, police didn’t release any details about their investigation. However, they said Jones, an Everman Fire Department employee, solicited Griffiths to commit the actual assault.

Aggravated Sexual Assault

What we know:

According to a search warrant affidavit, the victim was sexually assaulted in her home on Feb. 21. 

She told police she was lying in bed when she saw a light and a man she didn’t know standing in the doorway of her bedroom. 

She said she screamed and tried to fight the man off, but he ultimately pinned her down and raped her.

She managed to escape by telling the man she needed to go to the bathroom. 

She then ran out of the house half-dressed, taking note of the license plate on the man’s SUV, which was parked in her driveway.

When the man realized she was gone, he got into the SUV and drove away. The affidavit states he passed her on the street and "threatened her that he would return and finish the job and kill her if she called police."

She immediately called Jones, who then called 911 and took her to the hospital.

The Police Investigation

What we know:

The affidavit states that during an interview, the victim gave police descriptions of the man who sexually assaulted her and the vehicle he was driving.

She said she believed the man recorded video of her with his cellphone because he was holding it up with the light on when he arrived, and she could see the same light on during the offense.

She also told police he made a comment about knowing she’d be home alone.

Police were able to find video from a neighbor’s security camera that showed the suspect’s SUV arriving at the house.

They used the vehicle’s registration information to identify Griffiths.

Tobasia Griffiths Arrested

What we know:

When police questioned Griffiths, he told them that he’d met Jones on a hookup app called Sniffies.

"Jones approached Griffiths on the app and asked if he would be willing to have a sexual assault role play experience with [the victim]. Griffiths stated that Jones said [the victim] was into it, and wanted to do this, so he agreed," the affidavit states.

Griffiths said Jones gave him the home’s address, the code for the garage, the location of the woman's bedroom, and a day and time when she’d be home alone.

He showed police the conversations he and Jones had through the app, including a message that mentioned the "next plan is to have her kidnapped."

He said he sent Jones pictures of the house to let him know he was there and messaged him after it happened.

Griffiths said he thought "it was all part of the act and the fantasy" and only realized it may not have been consensual when Jones messaged him a few days later and said police were involved.

He was arrested a few days later and police confiscated his cellphone.

The search warrant affidavit states they were looking for location data showing where the phone was at the time of the offense, communication with co-conspirators regarding the offense, images and video related to the offense, and any web pages or history used to prepare or hide participation in the offense.

Joel Jones Arrested

What we know:

Police said the victim denied knowing anything about a "sexual assault role play experience" and denied giving consent to either Jones or Griffiths.

Jones was arrested on March 26, and his cellphone was seized as evidence.

Warrants show police also seized computers, thumb drives, and other digital evidence as part of the investigation.

Jones was placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

What we don't know:

The affidavit does not provide Jones’s account of what happened.

What they're saying:

"The allegations are deeply concerning, and we want the public to be assured that we are taking this matter with the utmost seriousness," Everman Fire Chief Landon Whatley said.

"This case is very early in the investigation stage. I am attempting to verify all of the facts right now," Jones's defense attorney said in a statement.

The Everman police chief did not want to comment as the department is not involved in the investigation but did reiterate that the allegations are deeply concerning. 

EvermanCrime and Public Safety