Philadelphia police arrested a man for the murder of a transgender woman in June, according to a news report.
Dominique Rem’mie Fells was killed on June 7 and thrown into the Schuylkill River, where her body was found without legs, NBC10 Philadelphia reported. Her legs were later found in a bag at the bottom of the river in an unrelated search. Philadelphia police said Monday that they arrested Akhenaton Jones, 36, in Los Angeles for the murder. (RELATED: Police Arrest Two In Alleged Plot To Attack Pennsylvania Vote Counting Center)
“She was a person who could light up a room even when she was being quiet,” Fells’ father told NBC10 in June. “The one thing that stood out about her is she did her own thing with confidence, which as a family we all embraced.”
At least 34 transgender Americans have been killed in 2020, according to the Human Rights Campaign, raising concerns from activists that the group often finds itself targeted. The majority of the 2020 victims were people of color and all but one of the 21 transgender Americans killed in 2019 were people of color, according to The Advocate. (RELATED: Philadelphia Officials Recommend Those Who Attended Biden Celebrations To Quarantine And Get Tested For COVID-19)
Jones is awaiting extradition to Pennsylvania from California, Philadelphia police said.