Elroy Chester: Serial Killer of Port Arthur, Texas
Background
Elroy Chester was an American serial killer, rapist, burglar, and armed robber whose violent crime spree terrorized Port Arthur, Texas, during 1997 and 1998. Born on June 14, 1969, in Jefferson County, Texas, Chester accumulated a criminal record beginning in his late teens. His earlier offenses were largely burglaries, but after his release from prison in March 1997, his criminal behavior escalated dramatically from property crimes to sexual assaults, shootings, and murder.
Chester frequently entered homes at night, sometimes cutting telephone lines or interfering with exterior security lights before going inside. He often carried a firearm and sometimes concealed his identity with a mask. His crimes demonstrated preparation and familiarity with burglary techniques developed during years of criminal activity. During the roughly six-month period in which his murders occurred, Chester was associated with numerous burglaries, several sexual assaults, and a series of shootings in the Port Arthur area.
Escalation of Violence
Chester's violent series began during the summer of 1997. On August 3, 1997, he burglarized a Port Arthur residence and stole a .380-caliber semiautomatic pistol. That weapon later became important to investigators because it was connected to shootings committed during his crime spree.
On August 9, 1997, Chester entered another residence and sexually assaulted a 10-year-old girl after restraining her. The child survived. Only days later, Chester was committing additional robberies and armed attacks. His crimes increasingly involved confronting people inside or around their own homes rather than simply stealing property from empty buildings.
On August 16, 1997, 16-year-old Oscar Morales was confronted at his bedroom window by an armed Chester, who demanded money. When Morales attempted to escape, Chester shot him in the leg. Morales survived. Chester later used a similar approach against Matthew Horvatich, shooting him in the shoulder. Horvatich also survived.
The Murder of John Henry Sepeda
Chester's first confirmed murder occurred on September 20, 1997. Seventy-eight-year-old John Henry Sepeda was asleep at his Port Arthur residence with members of his family when Chester entered the home during the night. Sepeda awoke and encountered the intruder. Chester shot him in the chest, killing him.
The Sepeda investigation initially went in the wrong direction. Other people were arrested as suspects before Chester's later confession established his responsibility for the killing. Chester admitted entering Sepeda's home to commit a burglary and shooting the elderly man after Sepeda awakened.
The Murder of Etta Mae Stallings
On November 15, 1997, Chester entered the Port Arthur home of 87-year-old Etta Mae Stallings. Stallings lived with her husband, who was bedridden. She awoke during the burglary and attempted to defend herself. Chester shot and killed her and took a .22-caliber firearm from the residence.
Later that same evening, the stolen gun was used during another attack nearby. Shots were fired through the open bedroom window of a residence where Peggy Johnson and Debra Ferguson were sleeping. Both women were wounded but survived. A dog inside the residence was also shot and killed.
The Murder of Cheryl DeLeon
Five days later, on November 20, 1997, 40-year-old Cheryl DeLeon was attacked outside her Port Arthur home as she returned from work. Chester knew DeLeon because the two had previously worked together at a local Luby's restaurant. His familiarity with her allowed him to know something about her routine.
Chester waited for DeLeon and attempted to rob her when she arrived home. A struggle followed. DeLeon was beaten with the firearm and fatally shot in the throat. Chester later admitted responsibility for her death. The killing was particularly significant to investigators because it demonstrated that Chester did not limit himself to randomly selected houses; he was also willing to target someone he personally knew.
Attack on Lorenzo Coronado
On December 7, 1997, Chester attacked Lorenzo Coronado in another armed robbery. Coronado was shot in the head and robbed of his wallet. Despite the severity of his wound, Coronado survived. The attack became one of several attempted killings that Chester later acknowledged to investigators.
The Killing of Albert Bolden Jr.
Another of Chester's confirmed victims was 35-year-old Albert Bolden Jr., the common-law husband of Chester's sister. Bolden was found dead at his Port Arthur residence on December 21, 1997, with a gunshot wound to the head. Published accounts state that Bolden appeared to have been dead for several days when his body was discovered, making the precise date of his death uncertain. December 21 is therefore more accurately described as the date his body was found rather than a conclusively established date of death.
Unlike most of Chester's victims, Bolden had a personal connection to him. Chester later admitted shooting Bolden and described the killing as an act of revenge connected to personal grievances. Investigators considered Bolden one of the five murders Chester confessed to committing.
The February 6, 1998 Home Invasion
The crime that ultimately resulted in Chester's death sentence occurred on February 6, 1998, at a Port Arthur home belonging to the family of Erin and Claire DeLeon, who were not related to murder victim Cheryl DeLeon. Chester had previously burglarized the residence and returned after observing members of the family.
Chester entered the house armed and wearing a mask. Erin DeLeon was inside with her young child. Chester forced her to surrender money and valuables. When her younger sister Claire and Claire's boyfriend arrived, Chester took them captive as well. He restrained the teenagers with duct tape and sexually assaulted the sisters at gunpoint.
Thirty-eight-year-old Willie "Billy" Ryman III, the girls' uncle and a Port Arthur firefighter, became concerned about his nieces and went to the residence with his fiancée, Marcia Sharp. Ryman approached the house while Sharp remained outside.
When Ryman entered through the rear of the residence, he encountered Chester. Chester fired a single fatal shot into Ryman's chest. Chester then went outside and fired additional shots toward the vehicle where Sharp was waiting before fleeing. Sharp survived.
Confirmed Murder Victims
- John Henry Sepeda, 78 — Killed September 20, 1997, in Port Arthur, Texas. Chester entered Sepeda's home during a nighttime burglary and fatally shot him after Sepeda awakened.
- Etta Mae Stallings, 87 — Killed November 15, 1997, in Port Arthur, Texas. Chester shot Stallings during a burglary of the home she shared with her bedridden husband and stole a firearm from the residence.
- Cheryl DeLeon, 40 — Killed November 20, 1997, outside her home in Port Arthur, Texas. Chester, a former coworker, attacked DeLeon during an attempted robbery and fatally shot her.
- Albert Bolden Jr., 35 — Killed in late December 1997 in Port Arthur, Texas. His body was discovered on December 21, 1997, after he had apparently been dead for several days. Chester confessed to shooting Bolden in the head.
- Willie "Billy" Ryman III, 38 — Killed February 6, 1998, in Port Arthur, Texas. Ryman, a firefighter, was fatally shot after entering a family residence where Chester was holding and sexually assaulting Ryman's nieces.
Other Known Victims and Survivors
- Unidentified 10-year-old girl — Sexually assaulted during a home invasion on August 9, 1997. She survived.
- Oscar Morales, 16 — Shot in the leg on August 16, 1997, after Chester demanded money from him at gunpoint. He survived.
- Matthew Horvatich — Shot in the shoulder during another armed attack in 1997. He survived.
- Peggy Johnson — Wounded when Chester fired into a bedroom on November 15, 1997. She survived.
- Debra Ferguson — Wounded in the same November 15, 1997 shooting. She survived.
- Lorenzo Coronado — Shot in the head and robbed on December 7, 1997. He survived.
- Erin DeLeon — Held at gunpoint and sexually assaulted during the February 6, 1998 home invasion in which Willie Ryman III was murdered.
- Claire DeLeon — Held captive and sexually assaulted during the February 6, 1998 attack. She survived.
Arrest and Confessions
Chester was arrested on February 8, 1998, approximately two days after Willie Ryman's murder. Investigators quickly began connecting him to the series of burglaries, shootings, and sexual assaults that had frightened Port Arthur residents for months. While in custody, Chester admitted killing Ryman and eventually led investigators to the murder weapon.
His statements opened the door to numerous previously unsolved crimes. Chester confessed not only to Ryman's murder but also to the killings of John Henry Sepeda, Etta Mae Stallings, Cheryl DeLeon, and Albert Bolden Jr. He additionally acknowledged surviving shootings and other violent offenses. Forensic and ballistic evidence supported important portions of his confessions, while DNA evidence linked him to sexual assaults.
Trial and Death Sentence
Chester pleaded guilty to the capital murder of Willie Ryman III. The punishment phase of his trial focused not only on Ryman's death but also on Chester's extensive pattern of violence. Prosecutors presented evidence portraying him as an extreme continuing danger to other people.
Chester's own behavior strengthened the prosecution's argument. During court proceedings he made threatening and inflammatory statements, including threats against police officers, prison personnel, and others. Rather than attempting to minimize his crimes, he openly discussed his willingness to commit additional violence.
A Jefferson County jury sentenced Chester to death in 1998. Although he had admitted four additional murders, he was not separately tried to verdict for each of those killings because the capital murder conviction in the Ryman case had already resulted in a death sentence.
Appeals and Intellectual Disability Dispute
Much of Chester's later legal battle concerned whether he was intellectually disabled and therefore constitutionally ineligible for execution. His attorneys presented evidence concerning low IQ scores, educational difficulties, and his history within special programs. After the United States Supreme Court ruled that executing intellectually disabled offenders violated the Eighth Amendment, Chester's lawyers argued that the ruling should prevent his execution.
Texas courts nevertheless concluded that Chester had not demonstrated the required level of impairment in adaptive functioning. Courts pointed to evidence showing that he planned his crimes, attempted to avoid detection, cut telephone lines, disabled or tampered with lights, used disguises, selected targets, concealed weapons, and attempted to deceive investigators. Federal courts ultimately upheld the Texas courts' determination and allowed the death sentence to remain in effect.
Execution
Elroy Chester was executed by lethal injection at the Huntsville Unit in Huntsville, Texas, on June 12, 2013. He was 43 years old and only two days short of his 44th birthday.
Before his execution, Chester apologized to Willie Ryman's family and again acknowledged his responsibility for the murders. His execution brought the legal proceedings to an end more than fifteen years after the Port Arthur crime spree.
Legacy of the Port Arthur Murders
Elroy Chester's crimes left five confirmed murder victims and numerous surviving victims of shootings, robberies, burglaries, and sexual assaults. His pattern of repeatedly entering homes transformed ordinarily private spaces into crime scenes and created widespread fear in Port Arthur during the latter half of 1997 and the beginning of 1998.
The five confirmed killings attributed to Chester were those of John Henry Sepeda, Etta Mae Stallings, Cheryl DeLeon, Albert Bolden Jr., and Willie Ryman III. Contrary to some inaccurate victim lists circulated online, available court records and contemporary reporting consistently identify these five people as Chester's confirmed homicide victims. Ryman's February 6, 1998 murder was the case for which Chester was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death, while Chester's confessions and investigative evidence connected him to the other four killings.
His criminal history illustrates a rapid progression from repeated burglary to increasingly violent home invasions, sexual assaults, attempted murders, and homicide. By the time he was arrested in February 1998, Chester had become responsible for one of the most notorious violent crime sprees in the history of Port Arthur, Texas.
