MONTGOMERY COUNTY — A 49-year-old man accused of shooting and killing a man, then moving his body behind a Popeye’s Louisiana Chicken restaurant has been formally charged, according to a spokesperson with the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office.
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A Montgomery County Grand Jury indicted James Ernest Hancock Jr., of Dayton on the following charges:
- Two counts of murder
- Two counts of felonious assault
- One count of tampering with evidence
- Two counts of having weapons while under disability
These charges stem from the shooting death of 35-year-old Matthew Thomas in October 2023.
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In the morning hours of Nov. 1, 2023, Dayton police were called to the 40 block of Wroe Avenue on report of a suspicious circumstance.
The caller reported that they saw two men placing a body in the bed of a pickup truck in an alley, according to the spokesperson.
Later that day, Harrison Township Fire Department crews responded to reports of a person down at Popeye’s Louisiana Chicken on Salem Avenue.
When they arrived, they found Thomas’ body behind the restaurant.
An autopsy found that Thomas died from multiple gunshot wounds to the head.
Investigators believe Hancock shot and killed Thomas, according to the spokesperson.
As previously reported by News Center 7, Hancock was previously indicted on two counts of tampering with evidence and one count of gross abuse on a corpse on Oct. 16.
Two days later, Hancock reportedly hit an unmarked police cruiser and then ran into an apartment complex on Wentworth Avenue, causing an hours-long standoff.
A SWAT team went inside the apartment building and arrested Hancock, according to a previous News Center 7 report.
Hancock remains booked in Montgomery County Jail and is scheduled to appear in court on March 4 at 1:45 p.m.
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