In the early morning hours of May 7, 2020, police in Junction City, Kansas, responded to a call at a home on the 800 block of W. 11th Street. Inside, they discovered two young men who had been shot to death. The victims were identified as Dylan Spencer, a 21-year-old White/Caucasian male, and 19-year-old Aaron Villarreal, both residents of Junction City.
The investigation into the double homicide soon led authorities to identify two suspects, and a multi-state search for them began.
In June 2020, police in Talladega, Alabama, apprehended 18-year-old Dontavion Wright in his hometown. He was arrested on a Geary County District Court warrant for two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of Spencer and Villarreal.
Three months later, in September 2020, the second suspect was located and taken into custody. Nathaniel Roderick Holmes, also known as “Nook,” was arrested in Radcliff, Kentucky. He was also wanted on a warrant for two counts of first-degree murder. Both Wright and Holmes were extradited to Kansas to face the charges against them. Holmes was held on a $2 million bond.
In August 2023, Nathaniel Holmes stood trial. After four days of proceedings, a Geary County jury found him not guilty on both counts of first-degree murder, and he was acquitted. As of that same month, the case against his co-defendant was still moving forward. Dontavion Wright remained charged with two counts of first-degree murder and was scheduled to face a jury trial in September 2023.
