Inset: Onindas Romelus (Fayette County Sheriff’s Office). Background: A Texas gas station that Oninda Romelus allegedly visited after shooting her four children (KHOU/YouTube).
A Texas mother, accused of shooting her four children and fatally wounding two of them, allegedly informed police that “instead of them doing it to me, I’m gonna do it to them,” referring to the act of killing her children. She later insisted that they are now with “the devil,” according to police reports.
Oninda Romelus, 31, faces charges of two counts of murder and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for the shooting incident on Saturday, which took place in Brazoria County before 4:45 a.m., as per court documents reviewed by Law&Crime.
Authorities report that Romelus, a resident of Porter in Montgomery County, allegedly contacted 911 during this time, instructing police to meet her at a nearby gas station in Angleton. Upon their arrival, the officers found her children — aged 3, 8, 9, and 13 — inside her vehicle. Deputies from the Brazoria County Sheriff’s Office discovered that Romelus had allegedly taken the lives of the eldest and youngest children, while the two middle siblings survived.
According to the criminal complaint, Romelus was in a white passenger car with the engine running and “all of the doors opened,” per the deputy.
The complaint states, “[The cop] observed the body was positioned with its body hanging halfway out of the front passenger door, with legs in the vehicle and the upper torso and head on the ground,” referring to one of the victims.
Surveillance footage allegedly shows Romelus pulling into the gas station and pumping gas, with cops saying she purchased $56 worth of fuel.
The complaint further notes, “Romelus was talking on her phone as she can be seen getting fuel. She is observed walking around to the driver’s side of the vehicle, where she peers into the rear window before sitting back in the driver’s seat of the vehicle.”
Once cops arrived, they saw what was allegedly going on and jumped into action, performing lifesaving measures on the children, according to the complaint. “Two of the four children showed no signs of life, and the other two children were life-flighted to Memorial Hermann Hospital Downtown,” the document says.
After receiving her Miranda rights, Romelus began speaking with police while appearing “paranoid about her surroundings.” She was asked why she called 911 and initially stated that she “couldn’t talk about it” before allegedly confessing.
“Instead of them doing it to me, I’m gonna do it to them,” Romelus said, according to the complaint.
“Do what?” a deputy asked.
“Kill them all,” Romelus allegedly replied.
The mother claimed that she didn’t call 911 about what happened to her children, that she had called the “devil,” according to police. She also allegedly “stated that they were with the devil,” and that “they’re dead.”
Romelus added, “Cause you can’t take me without me taking you,” according to the complaint. She allegedly claimed that her children “were dead to her.”
Romelus was arrested and booked on murder charges, with a judge ordering her to be held on a $14 million bond.
“Child Protective Services is investigating this case and making sure that the safety and well-being of the surviving children is our first priority,” said Melissa Lanford, a Texas Department of Family and Protective Services spokesperson, in a statement to local Fox affiliate KRIV. “Ms. Romelus has had contact with CPS on one other occasion. Details of that interaction are confidential but will be included in a public Child Fatality Report when our investigation is complete.”
