‘Call 911’: Texas Dad Mistook Black Amazon Manager for Kidnapper, Shot Him and Left Him to Die—Now He’s Out of Jail
A mistaken identity put Desmond Butler, 25, in the deadly crosshairs of a father willing to gun down his daughter’s abusive boyfriend. The killing has left Butler’s family “devastated.” It was early Christmas morning when the innocent Amazon manager, who was off work at the time, had his “light” snuffed out. Jonathan Ross Mata, left, is accused of killing Desmond Butler. (Photos: KHOU screenshots) "We just want answers on why him. My brother was a light of joy," his sister Destiny told local station KHOU 11. "We're keeping each other tight and close and keeping his memories alive.” According to surveillance video obtained by police, Butler was driving his Honda Pilot into a Houston, Texas, Shell gas station around 1 a.m. on Dec. 25 when he passed Jonathan Ross Mata’s black GMC Acadia, which was parked at a pump. ‘You People’: Black Pennsylvania Woman Sues Bank After It Wrongfully Accused Her of Fraud, and Allegedly Caused Her Booming Car Dealership to Collapse Mata, 39, and his wife had just received a disturbing call from their 19-year-old daughter saying she had been assaulted by her boyfriend, according to a Jan. 14 press release. Her boyfriend was dropping her off at that Shell gas station, and she asked her parents to pick her up. According to Houston police, the couple claimed Butler resembled the boyfriend and that he was driving with a woman in the passenger seat, leading them to believe it was their daughter. When Butler passed by, Mata’s wife jumped out of their vehicle and chased Butler’s car on foot, reaching his back door. Meanwhile, Mata approached and opened fire, discharging two rounds to stop the car — all while keeping his cellphone out, according to a criminal complaint obtained by news outlets. After being hit, Butler attempted to drive north on a feeder road to West Sam Houston Parkway, but he lost control of his car and crashed into a pole in a nearby parking lot. According to the complaint, Mata and his wife drove to the crash scene and opened Butler’s passenger door to make the discovery that he was not their daughter’s boyfriend. “(The defendant) looked inside the vehicle and said something to the effect of, ‘Oh, we were looking for our kidnapped daughter, I’m sorry, we will call 911,’ and then drove away,” the complaint stated. On Christmas morning, Butler was rushed to the hospital, where he died from his injuries. The couple never called 911 and fled the scene before first responders even arrived, according to the complaint. They turned up at the police station with a lawyer nearly three weeks after the shooting, on Jan. 12, claiming it was all a misunderstanding. Mata has been charged with murder and is now out on a $50,000 bond. Butler was a Georgia native and moved to Houston in 2023 for a job at Amazon, where he worked his way up to become a manager.
