Extradition hearing set in Hall County Court for 17-year-old Texas homicide suspect

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (KSNB) — A Texas teen will appear in Hall County Court on Friday on a felony fugitive from justice charge.

The preliminary hearing regarding extradition is set for 17-year-old Tyler Roenz.

He was arrested after the body of his 49-year-old mother, Michelle Roenz, was found in the trunk of a car that he crashed on Interstate 80 near Wood River.

The crash happened after Nebraska State Patrol was notified from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office in Texas that the vehicle may be traveling through the state. State Patrol located the vehicle and attempted to pull it over but the driver fled, rear-ended a semi and crashed into a tree. The teen was taken to an Omaha hospital for treatment but has since been released to the custody of the Hall County Department of Corrections, where he awaits an extradition hearing.

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office in Texas said primary reports indicates Michelle Roenz died from results of strangulation and blunt force trauma.