TYLER, Texas — Editor's Note: The above video was published in March 2022.
A 20-year-old Tyler man was sentenced last week to 11 years for his role in helping another man hide the body of his roommate in March 2022.
Christian Navon Whitney-Polk pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence (a human corpse) on Aug. 3 in connection with helping hide the body of Anthony Wilson, 53. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison, according to Smith County judicial records.
In June 2023, Timothy Eugene Jones, 27, pleaded guilty to killing Wilson, who was his roommate, and he was sentenced to 40 years in prison.
Wilson's body was found in a heavily wooded area on March 27, 2022.
Whitney-Polk and Timothy Jones' ex-girlfriend Edna Jones, 30 were both charged with tampering with evidence (a human corpse). Edna Jones' case remains pending at this time, records show.
According to an arrest affidavit, Timothy Jones and Wilson lived in a three-bedroom house in the 3000 block of West Gentry Parkway with one person each renting a different room.
An officer found blood spatter on the wall behind the bed, what looked like brain matter on the bed, a bullet fragment on the bed, shattered glass, bedside table that was turned upside down and a lamp on the ground, the affidavit stated.
Edna Jones told police she saw Timothy Jones and another man (Whitney-Polk) carry Wilson’s body out of his apartment and into Wilson’s Ford Explorer, according to the affidavit.
Using cell phone data, police found Wilson’s Ford Explorer, which had blood inside and outside of the vehicle, at a house on Alice Street in Tyler, the document said.
In an interview with police, Edna Jones saw Timothy Jones and Whitney-Polk wrapping Wilson in a black comforter. She believed Wilson was dead because Timothy Jones shot him, according to the affidavit.
She heard Timothy Jones call Wilson “nosey” as he and the other man placed Wilson’s dead body into the Ford Explorer. Timothy Jones told her to clean the blood off certain areas of the apartment, which she then cleaned, the document read.
Police said Wilson's vehicle was driven to the creek area, the body was removed and it was possibly placed in the creek, the affidavit stated. Officers found Wilson’s body near a railroad bridge within 20 to 30 feet of the black comforter and other items found on the creek bank.