David Haskell Sparks, 61, was found dead of a gunshot wound outside his room at the Days Inn motel, 8312 S. Lancaster Road in Dallas, Texas, on May 30, 2016. Investigators say Sparks had arranged to meet 28-year-old Michelle Speed for a drug transaction; motel surveillance showed a silver four-door vehicle arrive with a man and two women, the trio enter Sparks’ room, a physical altercation occur, and then they leave in the same vehicle.

Police recovered multiple fingerprints in Sparks’ motel room that matched Speed and a cell phone belonging to her. A witness reported seeing 23-year-old Byron Dennard Reed point a gun at Sparks and hearing a gunshot. The Dallas Police Department issued an arrest warrant for Speed on June 3, 2016; she turned herself in on June 13 and was charged with murder. Reed was arrested June 14 with help from the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force and was also charged with murder. Both were held on $250,000 bond.

The investigation ties the killing to a drug transaction gone wrong. Anyone with information about Sparks, the meeting that night, or the silver four-door vehicle is asked to come forward.