Will Isern

wisern@pnj.com

Update 4:30 pm Monday:

Willie May Thornton has now been charged with homicide in the September 13 killing of Phoung Nguyen Troung. She was arrested with her son on Friday in connection with the murder.

Her son, Dontonio Diaz Thornton, 19, was charged on Friday night with homicide in the death of the 50-year-old storeowner.

Troung was found deceased behind the counter of his business, the T&M Food Mart on West Michigan Avenue, with an apparent gunshot wound. Forensic evidence and information from the public led to the arrests.

Original story:



A mother and son were arrested Friday in connection with the Sept. 13 killing of convenience store owner Phuong Truong, Escambia County Sheriff David Morgan announced in a press conference Saturday.

Dontonio Diaz Thornton, 19, is charged with homicide and robbery, and Willie Mae Thornton, 39, faces battery and burglary charges, as well as violating her probation.

Truong was found dead Sept. 13 behind the counter of his business, the T M Food Mart in the 1000 block of W. Michigan Avenue.

Investigators at Saturday's press conference said the Thorntons had lived in the area near the store.

Investigators wouldn't say how much money the Thorntons may have stolen, or whether they discovered any signs of a struggle inside the store during their investigation.

Morgan said the Thorntons stole the store's surveillance recording equipment, thereby hindering the investigators' efforts. That equipment has yet to be recovered.

"That made it much more difficult for the investigators, as they didn't have any photo IDs to to work off of," Morgan said.

Morgan encouraged business owners to consider upgrading surveillance systems to remotely store recorded data to prevent similar thefts in the future.

Morgan said investigators initially had little to go on, and praised the community for being forthcoming with information.

"These are the homicides we fear the most in law enforcement, the ones that are almost random in nature when there's little or no physical evidence," Morgan said. "They describe senselessness in our community, and it's not who we are and who we want to be known as. I thank the citizens of Escambia County for stepping up to the plate and doing what we've been asking them to do for the last couple of years."

Investigators said DNA evidence found in the store was a major break in the investigation, and Sheriff Morgan praised the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for expediting the processing of that evidence.

Truong's family were in attendance Saturday, and spoke briefly thanking the sheriff's office for their efforts.

"We're truly thankful to (officials) for finding justice for my father," Dien Truong said. "The biggest problem was language barrier, which we had to go back and forth on so many times, and that there was no surveillance to work with.

"It was just amazing how they were able to work through that. I also want to thank anyone who helped provide any information that led to the suspects and the truth in this case. Getting this far has helped my family in the healing process and getting peace of mind," Troung said.

Assistant State Attorney John Molchan said Dontonio Thornton's case will go before a grand jury on a yet unset date to face indictment on first degree murder charges. If indited, his case would then go before a death penalty review board to determine if the death penalty should be sought, Molchan said.

Asked if he believed all individuals involved in the robbery had been apprehended, Molchan pointed to the ongoing nature of investigation.

"Whether the whole truth has come out, we don't want to say yes or no because, in essence, it's still a continuing investigation," he said.