Feb 7, 2008 10:38 pm US/Central
Police Arrest Man For Murder Of Acquaintance
DALLAS (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
Dallas police have arrested 32-year-old Robert Lester Canaga of Dallas for the murder of George Stephenson.
The two day search for the Dallas retiree led police to his second home in Gainesville. When police arrived at Stephenson's childhood home, they found his body.
Dallas police say he was stabbed to death.
A long-time friend of Stephenson reported him missing after he didn't show up to a number of appointments.
"George is a very methodical person. He follows routines. George is responsible, not impulsive, so I immediately suspected there was some sort of difficulty," said Michael O'Neal.
By Wednesday morning, police discovered his credit card had been frozen due to suspicious activity.
"According to the Dallas Police Department, someone has been photographed using his ATM card," said O'Neal.
Police say Canaga is the man seen in that surveillance video.
Police also say Stephenson had known Canaga for a short time before the murder, but they are unsure of the specifics of their relationship.
"It wouldn't have been unusual for Mr. Stephenson to have open the door to Mr. Canaga. We're still trying to determine exactly how that happened," said Dallas Police Lt. Craig Miller. "But we do believe the motive for this murder is going to be robbery."
Friends of Stephenson said he was a substance abuse councilor and was popular in his Oak Lawn neighborhood.
Police are still looking for Stephenson's 2002 Lexus.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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