Fake name and broken ankle identified Deep Ellum shooter
Dallas police linked a man to a Halloween night shootout after he checked into a hospital under an alias he had used in a 2024 traffic stop.
By Jack Weber ·
A 31-year-old man surrendered to Dallas police on Nov. 4 after detectives traced him to a hospital visit where he used a fake name and presented with a broken ankle. The affidavit identifies David Yancy as the suspect in the shooting that left seven people wounded in Deep Ellum on Halloween night.
Police responded to a call about a shootout in a parking lot at 2626 Main St. at 1:02 a.m. on Nov. 1. Officers discovered seven individuals with gunshot wounds. The victims were Tamarius Jones, Deja Mane Wilson, Kevon Hunter, Asia Ross, Jakendria Polk, Emerson Franklin, and Jazmin Steve.
Detectives received a tip later that evening from a man whose wife knew details about the shooter. The woman told investigators that the suspect wore a gray hoodie and had broken his ankle during the incident. She also named a witness who was with the shooter at the time.
Police reviewed records from Baylor Medical Center and found a man arrived with an ankle injury that night. He checked in under the name David Jones and was wearing gray clothing without shoes. Detectives matched this alias to Yancy, who had used the same name during a traffic stop in 2024.
Yancy turned himself in to the Dallas Police Fugitive Unit at an apartment on Savoy Place in Garland. He surrendered after seeing his image on FOX 4's Trackdown segment. Officers arrested him at the location on Nov. 4.
The shooting was part of a wider wave of violence in the neighborhood on Halloween night. Four people died and roughly 15 others were injured in three separate shootings that occurred within a 75-minute window. The first incident began around 12:20 a.m. in the 2600 block of Elm Street. A second occurred at 1:05 a.m. in the 2600 block of Main Street. The third was reported at 1:35 a.m. in the 200 block of South Crowdus Street.
The four deceased victims are identified as 21-year-old Kaniesa Scott, 28-year-old Unique Elise Benjamin, 25-year-old Anthony Martin, and 20-year-old Isaiah Boling. Police Chief Daniel Comeaux stated that the injury count remains fluid because several victims transported themselves to local hospitals after the gunfire.
Officers were deployed to Deep Ellum for extra assignments to manage the Halloween crowd. In one instance, officers positioned less than two blocks away ran toward the sound of gunfire. They performed life-saving measures on the scene, reviving at least one victim, according to Chief Comeaux.
Police have not released a clear motive for the Nov. 1 shootout. One victim told detectives that a friend was involved in a physical altercation earlier in the night. The suspect's use of a previous alias and specific medical details provided the key link for the arrest.
