Published: September 30, 2009 08:35 pm      

Poynor man’s trial set to begin Friday

Trial is set to begin Friday in Conroe for a Henderson County man charged with participating in a Montgomery County killing two years ago.

Joshua Blake Berryhill, 27, of Poynor is one of four defendants indicted for capital murder in connection with the shooting of 52-year-old Gregory Willkomm of Magnolia. Berryhill is the last of the defendants to face trial for the Sept. 27, 2007 offense.

Two of the defendants, James Stallings and Kasey Erin Kantak, of the Houston area, were each convicted of capital murder, and sentenced to life in prison earlier this year.

On Sept. 24, Joshua Tarrant, 27, of Frankston was acquitted on a capital murder charge. According to the Magnolia County District’s Office, Berryhill’s trial is on the docket for 8:15 a.m. Friday in 410th District Court.

Berryhill was arrested on a murder warrant by Coffee City Police in October, 2007. He was booked into the Henderson County Jail with bond set at $750,000.

According to various police reports, Willkomm disappeared from his home Sept. 28, and was later found dead in Harris County.

Law enforcement officers in several counties participated in arresting eight suspects in connection with the case.

Five suspects, Tammy Monzingo, Johnny Monzingo, Robert Joseph Fath Jr., Kantak and Trussell, were charged with attempting to use the victim’s credit cards and identifying information.

Several of the suspects were said to have ties with the Aryan Brotherhood of Texas a gang with members in and out of the prison system.

Berryhill, at the time of his arrest, was also issued warrants for minor offenses. In December, 2006, Berryhill was indicted in Anderson County for possession of a small quantity of a controlled substance, stemming from a June, 5, 2006 arrest, according to information from the Anderson County District Attorney’s Office.

According to a published story in the Palestine Herald, testimony introduced at Tarrant’s trial showed that Willkomm died as a result of a single shot to the back of the neck from a .25-caliber automatic pistol.

The victim’s burned body was found two days later by authorities next to the San Jacinto River in Harris County, about 20 miles from the murder site.