Denton police have charged Don Edward Bullard Jr., 60, with murder in connection with the death of Angelique “Angel” Yvonne Hataway, who was reported missing in April 2019 and had not been heard from by her family since January of that year, authorities said.
Bullard and Hataway lived together at a rented home in the 500 block of North Mayhill Road at the time of her disappearance, according to a police press release. Investigators said Bullard was the last known person to have contact with her and that he was interviewed multiple times over the years, consistently telling detectives he had no knowledge of her whereabouts.
In September 2024, police were called to the North Mayhill Road property after the owner, who said the house was vacant and undergoing renovations, reported finding what appeared to be human remains buried in the backyard. A search of the property recovered remains and items known to belong to Hataway, police said, according to the Denton Record-Chronicle.
Don Edward Bullard Jr.
On December 17, DNA analysis matched the remains to samples provided by Hataway’s family, according to the police statement. Based on what police described as evidence gathered during the investigation, including witness and suspect interviews and the “totality of the circumstances,” detectives said they established probable cause to charge Bullard with murder.
An arrest warrant was issued on December 19 and served on Bullard while he was already in custody at the Denton County Jail on unrelated charges, police said. Sheriff records show Bullard was booked into the jail on December 16 on allegations of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon and a drug charge.
Police reportedly said those charges were not related to Hataway’s death.
Bullard received a one-million-dollar surety bond for the bail set on the murder charge and a $3,500 surety bond for the bail set on the drug charge, according to jail records.
Court records indicate Bullard had multiple prior run-ins with the law. County criminal court records show Bullard pleaded nolo contendere in misdemeanor criminal trespass cases and paid a combined total of about $1,500 in fees and fines in 2024.
Hataway, 41 at the time police believe she died in 2019, had advanced multiple sclerosis and required a wheelchair or walker, according to the Record-Chronicle. Additional details about the alleged circumstances of her death have not been released.