Arrests made in Paul Billion murder investigation after months of searching

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) - Over this past weekend, Sioux Falls Police made multiple arrests in connection with the murder of Paul Billion. The 36-year-old was found dead in his home on August 19.

Police said the three suspects were charged with murder, Gbo Youh, Thomas Tarley, and Soteemon Poley, were in possession of stolen guns when Billion was shot and killed. Youh and the fourth suspect arrested, Carnell Jimmerson, were also charged with multiple grand theft charges related to the stolen guns.

MORE: Police: Four arrested in Paul Billion’s murder investigation

Even as police say they’ve arrested four in connection to the death of Paul Billion, their investigation isn’t over. There’s still missing details, but authorities believe Billion’s murder appears to be drug-related. According to court documents, Youh told police that they were at Billion’s house to get marijuana, and that he knew that they were going to commit a robbery. The documents also say that employees at a convenience store overheard Billion inviting random people that he just met over to his home, the same night of the suspected incident.

“It appears that the root of this crime was drug-related, and that this was a robbery that had turned out differently than I’m guessing the robbers or Mr. Billion had suspected that this would end up.” Lt. Nick Butler said.

Authorities also believe that the gun used to kill Billion was stolen from the area earlier this year. Although they wouldn’t confirm whether the weapon has been recovered, they did state that the gun was likely stolen from a vehicle in the Sioux Falls area.

“So we do have a responsibility, everyone as a gun owner, to make sure that we’re keeping those firearms in a safe place.” Butler said.

Police Chief Jon Thum said it’s taken countless hours for detectives to gather the evidence they needed to start to connect the dots, and even more to find those they believe to be responsible.

“We have the luxury sometimes of solving homicides within hours. I think we’ve covered a couple this year that have gone pretty quick. Sometimes, we get a little bit accustomed to that’s how that works. The reality is is that each case is uniquely different, and they take time.” Thum said.

For those that live on the stretch of S Duluth Ave. where Billion was killed, the news is something many have been anticipating for months. Lela Tibbetts lived across the street from Billion. She said they’re thankful that even after months, they finally have answers as to what happened that night.

“We were, after this happened, leery also just living around here, because we don’t know exactly what might happen if something like this happened in our neighborhood.” Tibbetts said. “I’ve definitely got to give it to the Sioux Falls Police Department on getting a lot of things done. I’m sure we all appreciate that, that lived here for quite a while.”

Thum said the progress made in this case shows that with enough time and help from the public, that they can work to solve crimes even if they happened months ago. That includes their investigation into the death of Tunis Lomax, who was also killed in late August.

“Again, we will continue to pursue information on this and the Tunis Lomax homicide. If there are people in the community, especially now recognizing these names, the truth ultimately comes out. And we would appreciate it if you get yourself on the appropriate side of the truth.” Thum said.

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