Cops: Burglar charged in Austin choir director's murder

AUSTIN, Texas - Austin police say a 30-year-old man has been charged with capital murder in the December death of a choir director.

Authorities say Shawn Gant-Benalcazar of Galveston fatally stabbed 53-year-old Kathy Blair while trying to steal jewelry.

Gant-Benalcazar allegedly told police that he entered Blair's home through an unlocked back door. He says he saw Blair sleeping as he entered her room and stabbed her in the neck when she lunged at him.

An autopsy shows Blair was killed by a sharp force injury and asphyxiation. She was the director of the Christian Choral Society of Austin, a music program for home-schooled students.

Online records at Galveston County Jail showed Gant-Benalcazar was still in custody as of Monday. They didn't list an attorney for him. He's expected to be moved to Travis County Jail.

CBS affiliate KEYE-TV reports another man, Timothy Parlin, was also jailed on a parole violation in connection with the case. He has not been charged in connection with the murder, though he's expected to be, according to the station.

According to court documents obtained by the station, Parlin had been hired by Blair's landlord to replace a drain and lay some sod at the home where Blair was living. Authorities determined during the investigation that Parlin had brought Gant-Benalcazar to Blair's home, the documents say.

Police say footage from neighbors' security cameras helped them make the arrests, reports the station.