She helped catch a serial killer, cops say. Now this McDonald’s manager will get $110K.

A McDonald’s manager who turned in a gun that led to the arrest of a Tampa serial killer has been awarded $110,000.

“And she will receive every penny,” Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan said at a press conference Friday.

Howell Emanuel Donaldson III, a McDonald’s crew leader, was arrested and charged with four counts of first-degree murder after his manager, Delonda Walker, reached out to a nearby police officer on Tuesday.

During his shift, Donaldson, 24, handed a loaded 9mm handgun inside a McDonald’s bag to one of his co-workers. He asked the worker to hold it while he went to an Amscot money superstore to get a payday loan, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

Never miss a local story.

Sign up today for a free 30 day free trial of unlimited digital access.

That’s when Walker knew something wasn’t right and reached out to the police officer, police said. When Donaldson returned that afternoon, he was greeted by officers, who took him in for questioning. Late Tuesday, Tampa police announced that Donaldson would be arrested and charged with four counts of first-degree murder stemming from four shooting deaths in the Seminole Heights neighborhood in Tampa.

“This is the only arrest. He did it, that’s the way it goes,” Dugan said the next day. Officials say ballistics tests linked the murders to Donaldson’s gun. His cellphone location data matched the locations of the first three shootings, reported the Orlando Sentinel.

Police did not release details about the arrest, citing the open investigation. Dugan said the department had received “over 5,000 tips” since the murders began 51 days ago.

Walker in a statement said “receiving a reward never entered my mind.”

“I went to work on Tuesday intending to serve customers and do my job. The day turned out very differently,” she said in a statement read by Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn at the Friday press conference.

But giving police that crime tip was an eerie one for McDonald’s staff, who had previously teased Donaldson about how he resembled the serial killer, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

Colleagues said he looked like the shadowy figure in a hoodie police had released in a surveillance footage.

“I called him the killer to his face,” one employee told the media outlet. “He didn’t like that.”

The killings began on Oct. 9 with the shooting death of Benjamin Mitchell, 22, who was at a bus stop in front of his home. The second victim, Monica Hoffa, 32, was killed on Oct. 11. Her body was found two days later by a city employee in a vacant parking lot half a mile from where Mitchell was slain, the Bradenton Herald reported.

On Oct. 19, Anthony Naiboa, a 20-year-old with autism who had just graduated from high school, was found shot to death about 50 feet away from the bus stop where Mitchell died. Ronald Felton, 60, was the fourth victim. He was found Nov. 14.

“It was a dark chapter in Tampa’s history, but now that darkness has been removed,” Buckhorn said Friday.

On Thursday, Donaldson was charged with four counts of first-degree murder, records show. He’s being held at the Hillsborough County Jail on no bond.

Donaldson, shackled and in a blue anti-suicide vest, appeared in court before Tampa Judge Margaret R. Taylor via video, reported the Associated Press.

The victims’ families watched from the courtroom in tears.

Share and Enjoy

Cowboys’ roster more than enough to make run at playoffs

ARLINGTON, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys discovered something crucial at a time when they most needed a glimmer of hope. Even with their best offensive player suspended and their best defensive player sidelined by injury, this team still has the ability to impress. It’s taken three games of ugliness — and plenty of steadily building criticism — for the Cowboys to prove that to themselves. The hard part now is sustaining that effort at a time when a playoff spot still lingers as a possibility.

The Cowboys’ 38-14 win over the Washington Redskins on Thursday night was the kind of butt-kicking Dallas had needed to inflict on somebody for well over a month. Dallas was riding a three-game losing streak coming into this contest. Its offense had turned into a running joke, one that stemmed from its inability to function while star running back Ezekiel Elliott served a six-game suspension for domestic violence. With a 5-6 record entering this contest, the Cowboys looked very much like a team clinging to its last breath in a season that had been tumultuous since it started.

The difference Thursday was the Cowboys remembered something critical to their future hopes: They have more than enough weapons to make a run at a playoff spot. The key is that they maintain the same hunger that surged through them in this victory. “We knew that our margin [for error] was tight,” Cowboys tight end Jason Witten said. “So we just decided to get back, cut it loose and impose our will. We knew it was going to be that kind of game because this is a prideful team. But it’s a big win and all three phases had a role in it. It’s good to see us play that way and get some confidence going.”

Confidence had been hard to find around the Cowboys of late. It certainly wasn’t there during a 27-7 loss to Atlanta, when Falcons defensive end Adrian Clayborn tormented Dallas with a career-high six sacks. That swagger also wasn’t anywhere to be found in the Cowboys’ next two defeats after that — a 37-9 pounding by the Philadelphia Eagles and a 28-6 blowout at the hands of the Los Angeles Chargers on Thanksgiving. For those scoring at home, Dallas had been outscored 98-22 over their previous three games.

There’s no question that the absence of Elliott had plenty to do with the offensive struggles. Injuries to left tackle Tyron Smith and linebacker Sean Lee (who has missed the last three games) also didn’t help. However, there comes a point when a team can only lament such absences for so long. Dallas needed to start playing better, regardless of how they made that improvement happen.

This is why Thursday’s effort was so important. It wasn’t merely that Dallas won but the way they won. Quarterback Dak Prescott played efficiently despite bruising his hand in the second quarter while running back Alfred Morris gashed his former team for 127 rushing yards and a touchdown. The much-maligned defense flew around the field all day, forcing four turnovers and sacking Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins four times. Special teams also got into the act as well, with Ryan Switzer giving Dallas a 17-0 lead with an 83-yard punt return for a touchdown in the second quarter.

That success meant even more because Dallas opened this contest with three consecutive drives that lasted all of three plays before punts. Instead of succumbing to the feeling that they were in store for another sluggish effort, the Cowboys ramped up their energy and dominated. As Redskins head coach Jay Gruden said, “Credit them for making the plays. We just didn’t make any. You have to make plays in this game. We tried to fight back … We cut it to 10 [24-14] and we couldn’t stop them.”

“The biggest thing that we try to emphasize to our team is to focus on what’s in front of you, the task at hand,” Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said. “Whatever happened before in the last play, (or) the last game, is done. Good, bad or indifferent — focus on what we need to do. Our team did a good job of that this week. They did a good job of that tonight. They handled some adversity in the game tonight and just put it behind us and kept playing. That’s a sign of maturity — understanding that the experiences aren’t always going to be good [but] you learn from it and keep moving forward.”

That lesson was especially important for Prescott to remember. After becoming the darling of Dallas during a rookie season that saw him lead the Cowboys to the NFC East title, he stumbled more than anybody in the last three weeks without Elliott. Normally known for his efficient play, Prescott had thrown no touchdown passes and five interceptions during that losing streak. He also led the Cowboys to just two touchdown drives over the previous 12 quarters.

Prescott admitted that the frustration wore on him, but he also was encouraged by messages from former Cowboys quarterbacks Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach. “(Their message was) keep going,” said Prescott, who completed 11 of 22 passes for 102 yards and two touchdowns. “Keep putting your head forward. That’s the only thing really that you can do. The talk is going to be there, good or bad, so I am thankful for both those guys.”

As critical as it was for the Cowboys to improve to 6-6, all they’ve done is give themselves a chance to remain optimistic about what could happen come January. They now enjoy a 10-day break before their next game, a road trip to face a New York Giants team (2-9) that has just benched starting quarterback Eli Manning. After that, the Cowboys will play Oakland (also on the road) and Seattle before meeting the Eagles in the season finale. They also will have Elliott back for those final two games.

There are a lot of things that still have to go right for Dallas to earn a playoff spot in the ultra-competitive NFC, where 10-6 might not be enough to secure a wild-card bid. At least have their heads back in the right place. “We saw before our eyes how to keep a team together,” Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said. “I don’t recommend it for anybody but you have to walk out there and have that adversity and be shooting blanks. And do it about four times with turnovers. That’s the kind of thing that gets you down. But that’s why I compliment Dak and the way the defense has continued to make plays. That’s the kind of stuff that turns a team around.”

That much was evident from the way Dallas played Thursday. This was a game between two teams that found themselves in a similar dilemma, trying desperately to avoid a loss that would cripple their playoff hopes. One team left with their season in serious doubt. The other walked away feeling like it had been resurrected, with plenty of time left to accomplish even bigger things before this year ends.

Follow Jeffri Chadiha on Twitter @jeffrichadiha.

Share and Enjoy