DNA match in database led to man’s arrest in Ben Davis student’s slaying

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INDIANAPOLIS (Nov. 21, 2014) – Investigators revealed more information Friday morning about an arrest in the death of a 15-year-old Indianapolis girl.

Dominique Allen was abducted in the early morning hours on Aug. 31 while she was sitting outside her sister’s home. She was then found strangled, her body burned. Marion County Prosecutor Terry Curry called it a “particularly egregious case.”

Curry announced the filing of a murder charge against William Gholston. A DNA match broke the case open, Curry said, when Gholston’s DNA was matched to evidence from Allen’s sandal, foot and hand.

The teen’s father and two of her sisters and a cousin held hands as the prosecutor announced charges during a Friday morning news conference. Once the press conference was over family members prayed for justice in the lobby of the prosecutor’s office.

“I’m happy for all of that but at the same time I’m missing my daughter. I just miss her, I talk to her every night like she is still with me,” said Louis Allen, Dominique’s father.

Curry said it didn’t appear Gholston and Allen knew each other. Gholston was not a person of interest in Allen’s murder until the DNA match, Curry said.

“I would like to extend our commendation to the officers of IMPD whose dogged work led to the filing of charges,” Curry said during Friday’s news conference.

Detectives investigated the case for about two months. Gholston was arrested on a minor parole violation earlier this month in Bluffton, Ind. He was then brought to the Marion County Jail on the unrelated matter. He had been released from prison in May after serving eight years of a 16-year sentence.

Gholston was arrested in a 2002 murder case, but was later acquitted.

Lead Detective Marcus Kennedy said Allen’s family and the Indianapolis community kept the case alive. Detective Kennedy talked about the challenges of investigating this case, including several promising leads that didn’t pan out.

Court documents show Allen’s body was partially burned. She was found with a plastic grocery bag over her head. Coaxial cable was used tied around her ankles and hands. Documents show cable was also found inside a vacant home where police believe Allen was killed.

“A lot of the evidence that might of been there was destroyed. He made some mistakes, that’s all I’m gonna say,” said Det. Kennedy.

Gholston was paroled from prison earlier this year.

A source tells FOX59 News that IMPD homicide detectives are re-examining several unsolved death cases to determine if there’s a link to Gholston. He is not being called a suspect in those cases. Gholston has relatives on the east side where the bodies of three women were recently found.

Previous booking photos of Gholston can be found below:

Dominique's family is gathered here, holding hands. I talked to them on the phone last night. pic.twitter.com/tlEAfF8EnZ

— Liz Gelardi (@LizGelardi) November 21, 2014